


Your Lying Smile

by Dawnrider



Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Genre: Alternate Universe - Historical, F/M, Forced Marriage, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-23
Updated: 2020-09-19
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:27:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 60,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21535180
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dawnrider/pseuds/Dawnrider
Summary: A beautiful day by the river quickly takes a turn, taking control of her life completely out of Kagome's hands.  Her "rescuer" becomes something else entirely before she can get a word in edgewise.Feudal-esue AU
Relationships: Higurashi Kagome/InuYasha, Inu no Taishou/Izayoi, InuYasha/Kikyou (InuYasha), Miroku/Sango (InuYasha)
Comments: 224
Kudos: 260





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Posted today for Inuvember Any AU Day (November 23rd) Enjoy!

It should have been a relaxing day at the river. Laundry needed doing, it was sunny and warm, and there wasn't anyone else in sight. Kagome sighed contentedly. The repetitive motion of scrubbing was soothing in a way and she was able to set aside her stresses for a while. The rocks at this point in the river were wide and flat, perfect for laying out things to dry until they could be hung up at home. The household’s one maid was pregnant and too ungainly at this point to do the laundry alone, so Kagome had happily offered to do it with the knowledge that she’d be free of the confines of her home for a short while.

The sunshine and fresh air soothed her soul, making her realize how much she had needed this outing. Kagome smiled as a couple of birds chased each other near the reeds on the opposite bank. They were noisy, but playfully preened their feathers once one caught the other.  _ A pair, maybe? _ She thought. Scrubbing took her full attention once more as she worked at a particularly stubborn grass stain Sota had gotten in the knee of his breeches. Tired and hot from all the work necessary to get the green mark out, Kagome sighed and looked around. With no one nearby, Kagome felt it was safe to take a quick dip herself. 

Hair sticking to her neck as she sat on a wide rock to dry before heading home, she was nearly knocked back into the river by a large body colliding with her back. Kagome would have screamed but for the hand covering her mouth, muffling any sounds she tried to make. It did not, however, keep her from elbowing her assailant in the gut as hard as she could. He let out an "oomph" and released her purely in surprise. Kagome scrambled to her feet, trying to keep from getting closer to the river. She couldn't risk him trying to corner her in the water. She wasn't a very good swimmer and she doubted she could outpace him.

"Oh, a feisty one? Don't see that often anymore." The smirk in his voice did not match the slight grimace on his face. Kagome felt a little pride at the way he gingerly touched his stomach.

"What do you want?" she snapped. His eyes made it clear exactly what he wanted. In another situation, Kagome might have found the man attractive, however, in this instance his blue eyes, jet black hair and toned body only accentuated his strength and the glint of devilry in his gaze. He didn't hear “no” for an answer from much of anyone. She was no match for him and she would be in trouble if he caught her again.

"Ah, my lady, I do believe we've gotten off on the wrong foot." He dipped into a low bow. "I am Koga, prince of the wolf demon tribe." Kagome gaped openly, finally catching the point of his ears and the fluffy tail swishing behind him. The ookami tribe’s lands bordered the eastern edge of her father’s but they had not been seen within the inuyoukai borders for nearly a decade. “I scented you on the breeze, and when I saw your lovely figure sitting there I could not help myself.” Kagome scowled at him. She imagined a few women she knew who might fall for a line like that. She was not one of them.

"As flattering as you think that is, I'm not interested." His eyes widened in shock.  _ Definitely doesn't experience rejection.  _ "Now please allow me to gather my laundry and I'll be on my way."

Koga's gaze swept over her form, her yukata still sticking obscenely to her body. "I don't think so, little bird," he purred, stalking closer. "You look good enough to eat."

Without hesitation, Kagome took off running, heedless of the direction, her bare feet or state of undress. Her passage through the woods left scratches all over her and the sound of snapping branches.  _ Please! Please, someone help me! _ Kagome barely avoided stumbling over a tree root only to collide with a hard chest. Looking up, she was stunned by the fierce amber eyes that pinned her in place. The strong, warm arm around her waist locked her against the lithe but firmly muscled body blocking her path. While glad that someone had been close by, she wasn’t sure if this was an improvement. She scowled in frustration, further aggravated by how badly this day was going.

"I've told you to stay the fuck out of my territory, wolf!" The man suddenly called over her head, startling Kagome out of staring at his sternum. The ookami slunk into view through the trees, clearly not having to exert himself in the least to keep up with her. He was playing with her!

"Since when do you keep humans as your territory, half-breed?" her pursuer snorted. What was Koga talking about? Looking up again, Kagome took in the features she had previously missed. Silver hair, golden eyes, fangs and animal ears on top of his head. Definitely not human, but not fully youkai either. Her eyes widened. There was only one man in the area who matched that description.  _ Lord Inuyasha? What is he doing out here? _

“You’re the Higurashi girl, right?” he snapped at her. She nodded. “Right. Then she’s under my protection. Her family’s land is within the border of my territory. Now scram.”

Koga’s smirk only grew. “But we were just getting to know one another, right Higurashi-san?”

Inuyasha growled in response but allowed that he could have mistaken the situation. He looked down at the woman in his arms who reeked of fear and anger. “Do you want to stay with this guy?” the young lord asked her. His sunlit eyes searching her face nearly stole her breath.

“No, my lord. I was doing laundry. He… interrupted.”

Her omission of details spoke louder than she realized. Inuyasha barely held in a growl of anger on her behalf. “See? Fuck off, ya fleabitten wolf. I’m not warning you again.”

Koga sneered, but turned to leave. “I’ll be back for you, little bird!” Kagome shivered.

“Are you alright?” he asked her, looking her over. “You’re bleeding. Did he scratch you?” She could tell from his tone that he was looking for an excuse to hunt down the ookami prince more than he was showing actual concern for her. She tried to explain that she would be fine and just needed to... “I’ll take you into the village.”

“No, my Lord. I’m alright. I’ll go collect my things and return home.” She tried to pull from his hold only to find his arm tightening. “My lord?”

“I hear voices.” He lifted his nose. “Humans." He started them in one direction only to stop and try to go another. Suddenly they were surrounded by human villagers foraging for herbs and edibles. Inuyasha looked down at her soaked yukata and quickly whipped his suikan off and around her shoulders, hiding her from view.

"My lord, I can go alone,” she attempted to reason with him. “They'll think the worst if we're seen together." He didn't appear to be listening, looking around for an escape route. Kagome tried to give him back his suikan only to have him growl at her. "My lord…" she hissed at him, a barely contained reprimand in her tone.

"Stop calling me that. It’s Inuyasha," he snapped in a whisper, tucking the folds around her even more tightly. Kagome jerked in surprise, too stunned by the familiarity he was allowing her and his easy familiarity in touching her to reply. He hardly noticed, too focused on listening. Peering out from their little copse of trees, he realized they couldn't leave without being spotted. "Damnit."

"He's gone. I can go back…"

"No. That mangy wolf is still lurking around." He watched the movement of the humans around them in hopes of seeing an opening. He scowled as one small group of women drew close enough that they would easily be able to see the two of them should they look in the right direction. Maybe up? He backed up to get a look at the trees above, knocking into Kagome. She took a step back and yelped as a rock nearly pierced her foot. “Fuck, are you alright?” he hissed. But it was too late. The others were starting to crowd toward their hiding place and there were murmurs about what it could be. After a breath, he moved to step out and confront them, only to have the young woman at his back tug at his waist. Looking over his shoulder, he saw the fear in her eyes and the way she was shaking her head.

He quickly lost the opportunity to ask her what she was so afraid of. “Ah! My lord!” a woman exclaimed. “We did not know you were out this fine day.” The others moved in to greet him as well, respectful but duly fearful given his position and strength. He saw the moment the villagers spotted Kagome and, more importantly, when they saw her state of dress.

He immediately caught the whispers with his sensitive ears. " _ What is she wearing? Her legs are… She’s tried to entrap the young lord. That hussy! To think she would try to force his hand by seducing him…" _ He was about to protest aloud when the worst of them caught his attention. " _ She could never have hoped for such a match, not with her father gone. No better than selling herself to the madam. Whore." _ The last reverberated through his skull like a bell being rung. He felt a momentary flash of rage that he quelled with a deep breath and a clenched fist. He struggled with what to do. The Higurashi girl had tried to tell him, had tried to separate them so exactly this scenario would not happen. He hadn’t listened. Stubbornly fixated on protecting her from Koga, he hadn’t thought about protecting her from the wagging tongues that would chase her the rest of her life if he didn’t do something quickly. 

“Ah, my darling,” he snarled out. The words felt foreign on his tongue but the tone certainly got everyone’s attention. “It appears as though we’ve been found out.” Kagome looked around in confusion for a moment before her eyes grew wide with realization. Fear entered her scent and she shook her head slowly in disbelief. Inuyasha swallowed hard. “I suppose it was inevitable. We will marry sooner than we planned.”

“My lord…” she said in a warning tone, her eyes blazing fire. His eyes sparked dangerously in her direction, instantly silencing her denial. “I-If that is your wish, my lord,” she eventually breathed out, bowing her head. Gritting out a smile, Inuyasha glanced around the clearing at the gathered humans who were looking a bit bewildered. Not a single youkai among them to help him verify the truth, so he had no choice but to continue protecting her or leave her to her fate as a suspected gold-digging harlot. He watched the way she pulled his suikan around her small frame, not really hiding the fact that she wore nothing more than a bathing yukata. A large part of him felt shame for what he had forced her into. Part of him was terrified of what he’d gotten himself into. The remaining feeling seemed to come from nowhere. Pride and lust at seeing her nearly naked in his clothing.  _ Cool it, you animal, _ he growled at his youkai half, buried and simmering in his blood.  _ Now is not the time. _


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Whisked away and a bit bewildered, Kagome gets acquainted with her new home.

The following weeks were a blur for Kagome. She was barely allowed to return home to collect her things before being swept away to the keep. Her mother and brother had been too stunned to offer much in the way of protest. How could they refuse her marrying one of the most eligible and powerful bachelors in the territory? Nevermind that they had never actually spoken to one another before that day. Or that Kagome had not yet debuted in society due to her family’s tight finances. Kagome could only numbly sit in the circle of the inuhanyou’s arms on the horse they rode, silent, as she was taken from the only home she had ever known.

Within the keep, she spent several days confined to a room which at least overlooked one of the gardens, but had little to occupy her time except worry and frustration. After “proper” attire had been made for her, she was finally introduced to the inuyoukai lord, his human wife, and the elder young lord from a previous youkai union. “So this is the young lady who will be your bride, Inuyasha?” the Inu no Taisho mused with a raised eyebrow. The inuhanyou at her side nodded tightly. Kagome remained kneeling where she was. “My lady, you have no need to be so formal here,” he smiled down at her. She looked to Inuyasha who reached out a hand to help her to her feet. For all his stiff attitude in front of others, he was considerate of her.

“Thank you, my lord.”

“I did not know that you were well acquainted with the Higurashi family, Son,” his mother said. There was a doubtful look in her eye that neither one of them could ignore. Kagome remained silent for fear of interfering with what the young lord planned to tell his family. There were also retainers present, so it was impossible for him to tell the complete truth.

“Higurashi-san and I encountered one another in the woods when I was on a hunt. Koga of the wolf tribe was chasing her and I couldn’t let him hurt an innocent. Things just… progressed from there.” She was stunned by the not exactly untrue recounting of their meeting. It allowed for interpretation of how long they had known one another and to what extent they had “progressed” in their relationship. “Marriage is the only way forward.”

“I see. You love her to distraction and must marry immediately?” Inuyasha’s spine stiffened at his father’s sly tone. He didn’t answer and his father’s gaze became even more suspicious. “Ah, young love,” he said instead of whatever was on his mind. “How about you and I discuss the details of her bride price in the privacy of my study, my boy. Higurashi-san, it has been a delight to meet you this day.”

“T-thank you,” she whispered. Kagome stiffened when both Inuyasha and his father moved to leave the room. “Ah…”

The elder inuyoukai made a vague calming gesture in her direction. “You may return to your room, if you wish.”

“I will walk her back. It can be difficult to navigate the keep when you are not familiar with its halls.” The elegant lady rose from her seat as if a swan was unfurling her wings. Kagome, who already felt plain, nearly cowered in response.

Inuyasha hesitated at the doorway, glancing at his unwilling bride. “Mother, I can…” Izayoi hushed her son, delicately waving him away.

“Go speak with your father, Inuyasha. I look forward to speaking with your lovely lady.”

Kagome did look to Inuyasha then, wide-eyed and clearly unsure. Again he moved to go to her rescue, undoubtedly feeding into the story that he was lovestruck. “Come, Boy,” his father rumbled, snatching the back of his suikan and almost dragging him out of the room. Kagome swallowed and closed her eyes a moment before facing the regal woman at her side. The smile turned on her was full of maternal kindness.

“You have certainly captured that boy’s attention,” Izayoi mentioned conversationally while leading her out of the room and into the maze of corridors. Kagome’s returning smile was weak. “I do not wish for you to feel uncomfortable in our presence, my dear, we only wish to know you better. Inuyasha has never expressed interest in marriage before now, so we want to know the astounding young woman who could turn that stubborn boy’s head.”

“Eh heh. Well it’s been such a whirlwind. It feels like we just stumbled upon one another.” Kagome smiled a little more genuinely. “He saved me from that persistent guy. I don’t know what I would have done if he hadn’t found me.”

Izayoi chuckled lightly. “Have you heard the stories about how my husband and I met?”

Eyes wide, Kagome took a breath to keep from squeaking. There were all kinds of rumors about how the human lady had captured the heart of the fearsome Inu no Taisho, some of which were not exactly kind, nor flattering, to either one of them. Izayoi, in particular, bore the brunt of the old biddies’ gossip. “I had heard you met when he was injured from a great battle.”

It was clear the lady knew Kagome was hedging. “That much is true. I came upon him in the forest when he was injured. He was more or less at my mercy.” The elder human woman’s voice turned gentle. “It took some time for him to trust me. He had only ever been attacked by humans.”

“I imagine that would be very frightening for both of you.”

Izayoi smiled. “He actually tried to scare me at first, then eventually let me tend to him. He claims to this day that I saved his life.” She laughed a little. Kagome got the feeling that there was more to the story that she wasn’t sharing. “He returned the favor and saved me from an arrogant human man who had decided, completely on his own, that I had been promised to him. The fire that destroyed my family home?” Kagome nodded that she had heard of it. “Takemaru caused it. I was pregnant with Inuyasha and vulnerable. He hoped to ‘purify’ me of my sin and my taint in death.”

Kagome covered her mouth in horror, stopping short to stare. “How… how could anyone do something so horrible?”

“To some, marrying and mating with Toga was the worst thing I could have ever done.”

Kagome was already shaking her head in denial. “No. That is wrong, my lady. Loving someone, no matter what their blood is made of, is not wrong.”

“Hm. I like your spirit, Kagome.” She paused, as if in thought. “It helps that he was just too handsome to stay away from,” Izayoi giggled. Kagome sputtered in shock, blushing slightly. “My darling son inherited his father’s striking features, wouldn’t you say, Kagome, my dear?” Her flush increased. The lady outright laughed at her discomfiture but brought her to her room just before Kagome thought she might burst into flames from embarrassment. “He may seem prickly sometimes, but he is a very goodhearted young man.”

The younger woman took a breath. “He is kind.”

“I bid you farewell then. Do rest up.”

“Thank you, your ladyship.”

Meanwhile, Inuyasha was getting the verbal lashing of a lifetime. “How could you be so foolish, boy?! Of course the villagers would assume you’d sullied her!”

“That mangy wolf…”

“The wolfling aside, you needed to keep your head. It sounds like she was well aware and tried to tell you.” Toga huffed. “Maybe she is a good match for you. At least one person in the relationship needs to have sense.” Inuyasha’s lip curled in irritation but he held back a growl at the knock to his intelligence. His father would not stand for that kind of insolence and it would only prove that he was unable to remain calm. “That young lady is not at all prepared for the life that awaits her at your side, especially if you do not love her.”

Inuyasha’s ears drooped as he slumped, defeated. “I know. I haven’t had a chance to explain it to her.” He growled at himself. “Can’t we just…”

“What? Make someone verify her purity and send her on her merry way?” There again came the shame of what he was subjecting the Higurashi girl to alongside the pain of what he too was losing. His father’s eyes glittered with anger. “You know humans will doubt it, no matter how many youkai noses confirm it. She will never find a husband, Inuyasha. Certainly not a human one.” The inuhanyou turned his gaze to his hand, studying it curiously as it curled into a fist without conscious thought. What caused his fingers to clench as if enraged at the thought of her marrying someone else? “Your youkai does not approve?”

“I… I don’t know.” Toga stepped around the desk between them to watch his son more carefully, analyze his scent. “Kagome will marry another,” he muttered. He was not entirely surprised to feel the rise of his son’s youki and a hint of irritation lightly enter his scent. “Or she will marry you. She must be married to protect her honor.”

“I take responsibility for her honor,” he responded almost reflexively.

“But what of her heart? Or your own? These are things you must consider. I do not wish to see you wither away after your wife dies of old age because either one of you chooses not to bond.” Inuyasha’s eyes jumped to his father’s. Obviously that thought had not crossed his mind yet. “Neither do I think you wish to watch her wither away in front of you because she is trapped in a marriage without love.”

“No,” he murmured. “I will…” Inuyasha took a breath. “I will marry her.”

Toga sighed through his nose. His son, while honorable and loyal, was stubborn, thickheaded and often a bit rude. He was everything Toga himself had been at his age. He only hoped that his son’s instinct in this matter was not steering him wrong. “Now then. We will discuss the bride price…”

* * *

The walk was supposed to be calming, a chance for them to speak in private and get to know one another better. Instead they walked completely in silence with Inuyasha frequently ahead of her. His legs were much longer and he seemed to be stomping everywhere. Kagome realized, much later, that he was partially marking the area with his scent to keep others from inadvertently entering inuyoukai territory. She tried to tame all feelings of exasperation and enjoy the fresh air while she had the opportunity.

"Keep up, Wench!" he called from somewhere deeper into the forest. Kagome bit back a growl, unknowingly mimicking her soon to be husband. He had taken to calling her by the new nickname or "woman" when it was just the two of them instead of using her name and it was beginning to crack her resolve to remain polite and collected.  _ It’s like he’s trying to make me mad on purpose! _

Kagome fumed as she followed behind, trying to listen for his stomping to determine where he was. She had a feeling he didn't entirely understand that not everyone had his senses and not everyone got to wear loose-fitting hakama that allowed for freedom of movement.  _ Inuyasha no baka! _ In the privacy of her own thoughts, she berated him for his thoughtlessness, his self-centered thinking, his completely arrogant...

She was struck dumb when she was grabbed from behind, a hand hovering over her mouth in case she started to scream. Ready to do her betrothed serious harm for sneaking up on her, she took a breath in preparation for the rant she had ready for him.

"Left on your own again, huh little bird?" Kagome's eyes widened in shock and fear and she swallowed her breath all wrong. Koga couldn't really be that arrogant and stupid, could he?! "I told you I would come back for you." The hand near her face, the arm around her, was too dark in color to be Inuyasha. She felt the heat of the ookami prince’s breath near her neck as he deeply sniffed her. "The mutt hasn't claimed you yet. Odd, given the rumors that he would have to marry you after supposedly defiling you," he snarled. His arms tightening around her made her squeak in pain.

"Please, Koga-kun, you're hurting me." Kagome tried to remain calm and defuse the situation, praying Inuyasha would notice she was gone soon and come back looking for her. She knew from previous experience that there was no way she could outrun Koga.

He released her, spinning her around to look her in the eye. She could tell he was preening under the use of the more familiar honorific. "Ah, my Kagome, I'm sorry. I forget you are only human." Kagome doubted that very much, but chose not to comment. "Now. Let me rescue you from that cur." He reached down as if to lift her into his arms, startling when Kagome backed away.

"I… what about my family, Koga-kun?" Luckily for her, the wolf was not astute enough to catch onto her stalling right away. "They will be scorned if I disappear without a word." He studied her with those intensely blue eyes of his. The ookami youkai, prince or not, clearly had almost no idea about human social conventions.

"I will do the human thing, and marry you, then they can't say anything. I'm the better choice for a mate." Kagome barely restrained herself from rolling her eyes. So far, he had done nothing but prove he was not the one for her. His outrageous assumption that she would fall for his "charms" without knowing anything about him at all was rubbing her exactly the wrong way. He was arrogant, pushy, domineering and completely self-absorbed.  _ Then again, Inuyasha hasn’t been much better lately... _

"Kagome!"

Both dark heads popped up at the distant call of her name. Koga's face twisted in a snarl as he moved toward her, hands grasping. Kagome backed away but wasn't fast enough to get out of his reach. He hefted her up, about to throw her over his shoulder, but froze at the snarl of rage that filled the small clearing. Kagome wiggled to get him to release her, only managing to have Koga tighten his grip. Pain shot through her, her ribs creaking in protest at his tight hold. Her reactive gasp was the catalyst that set everything in motion.

She hit the ground none too gently, but it was an improvement from the vice grip on her ribcage the youkai had been exerting. Dazed, all she could do was lay where she’d landed, taking slow breaths and wincing when her sides screamed at the expansion of her lungs. She only heard the sound of growls, grunts, and flesh and bone impacting each other. It took her several breaths before she could roll onto her back and unsuccessfully attempt to sit up. Only to see a brawl the likes of which she’d never witnessed.

Both of them moved almost faster than she could follow. Koga was all speed and agility, where Inuyasha excelled in brute strength and resilience. They were arguing, shouting obscenities in general and calling each other's legitimacy into question. It was soon clear that while Koga could dole out punches, he could not take them nearly as well as Inuyasha. When he whirled from a direct hit to the chin, Inuyasha was finally able to put himself solidly between her and the wolf.

"Get. Out. Now. Don't come back," he growled out. Koga looked to her, about to give a protest, then winced at his jaw opening. There was already a large red mark on his cheek and chin that would likely turn an ugly purple shortly. He pulled himself to his feet and dusted himself off gingerly. "Scram!"

Koga held his hands up. "Didn't think you were so protective of a human female you're not even mated to." Inuyasha twitched but said nothing. "Kagome, I'm sorry I was too rough." Hardly more than a breath later and he was gone.

Her inuhanyou protector dropped to his knees beside her. "Kagome? Kagome, can you sit up?" His voice was far gentler than she'd ever heard it before. Large hands braced her shoulder and back to help her upright. She groaned with the movement. "Kuso. Kagome? Talk to me."

"You said my name," she murmured.

Inuyasha blinked at her a moment before she swore she saw a flush creep onto his cheeks. "Are you hurt?" His hands ghosted over her sides, seeking any injury. Kagome sucked in a breath when he incidentally found the tender part of her ribs. "Shit. Let me see…"

She only just stopped him from unwinding her obi in an attempt to get to her bare skin. "My lor… Inuyasha, stop. You can't."

"I'm going to…" He paused, catching the panic in her scent and the look in her eyes. His youkai snarled within him at the restraint he was barely able to exercise  _ not _ to check his mate's possible injury immediately. "I'll get you back," he said instead. Without another word, he lifted her into his arms and took her straight to the keep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A chance encounter in the garden. Kagome spends more time with her future in-laws.

Inuyasha had insisted she rest for over a week after their encounter with Koga, but Kagome had been near out of her mind with boredom. Izayoi had been called in to talk her son down from trying to check her for injuries himself while they waited for the healer to arrive. She had very delicately tried to explain her son’s odd behavior, but had given up when Kagome was obviously in too much pain to truly understand her innuendos.

She had been walking through the garden to get some fresh air - now that she was allowed to leave her room - she hadn’t meant to stumble upon them. The whispers didn’t catch her ears until it was almost too late. Inuyasha stood with a finely dressed young lady with long dark hair, so close that there was no question as to the nature of their relationship. Her delicate hands clung to his kosode and his larger hand covered hers in a gesture of affection. “This is not happening. It cannot!”

“I… I don’t know what else to do. I’m sorry,” he told her with regret, his free hand coming up to brush a tendril of hair from her cheek. Kagome shrunk back further behind the blooming shrubbery that hid her position. The combination of the scent of the flowers and his intense focus on the woman in front of him must have kept the inuhanyou from noticing her. “Kikyo, you know I care for you.”

“Then cast aside this girl. You hardly know one another.”

“I can’t.”

“Do you care for her more than you do for me?” she asked, obvious hurt in her tone. Kagome winced at the accusation. “Is her honor more important than your promise?”

“Were you in the same situation, you would be grateful for someone thinking of your honor,” he rumbled. Kagome could hear that he was irritated, but that he remained so completely gentle with Kikyo when he would likely have snapped at anyone else was a bit surprising. “I wish it were different. If she tried to go back to her home, they would shun her whole family.”

“That isn’t your responsibility. You saved her from that arrogant ookami, did you not? Her fate could have been far worse. She can be grateful for that.”

“Kikyo,” he said a little warningly, but still without the bite Kagome was accustomed to hearing. _He doesn’t really sound like himself at all,_ she thought. _He must trust her though, to tell her the whole truth of our situation._

She persisted. “You promised we would marry.”

“I know. I know I did,” he whispered, leaning down to press their foreheads together. “You didn’t hear the things they said. It’s my fault for not thinking about what others would assume,” he said with a scowl. Kagome gasped involuntarily. Not waiting to hear any more, she bolted from her hiding place in the opposite direction of the lovers, flying as fast as her slippered feet would allow her. She vaguely saw surprised faces as she sprinted down the hall toward her room. She had not truly appreciated the seclusion it offered her until that moment. With the shoji shut tightly against the outside world, she collapsed, sucking air into her lungs and wincing at the residual ache from her injured ribs.

_Why would he do that?_ she wondered miserably. Giving up his own happiness, his love, just to protect her honor. He should have cast her aside. He could have let Koga take her away. It wouldn’t have been his fault, really. She left herself vulnerable when she made the mistake of bathing in the open when no one was there to watch out for her. It was one thing when he'd taken her in with no one else getting hurt, completely another when this other lady's future was equally crushed. Kagome kept seeing the way they pressed together in love and longing in her head. An emotion she had no hope to ever feel with anyone. _Lord Inuyasha will never feel that way about me._ She mourned her lost potential and his lost chance for happiness. All because that idiot wolf had to chase her!

A loud rap at the door made her heart jump and she scrambled away from the entry. Kagome struggled to brush her wild hair from her face in order to look as composed as possible. 

“What are you doing running through the…” Inuyasha took a deep sniff and froze, eyes widening. She smelled strongly of azaleas, the same ones that grew in the garden near where he and Kikyo had been talking. “How much did you hear?” he snarled at her. She shook her head to deny his accusation. “Woman, how much did you hear?!” He approached her without realizing it until he hovered over her like a predator about to go in for the kill. The sharp scent of her fear and tears snapped him out of his aggressive stance and he stepped back. It was never his intention to make her fear him. In fact, her fear made him feel a little sick to his stomach. Why had he reacted so forcefully? 

“I’m sorry, my lord,” she whimpered, still quaking slightly. She had never seen him with such unbridled fury on his face, his eyes wild. “I was only walking in the garden to feel the sun. It was an accident.”

Inuyasha shook his head to clear it of the decidedly demanding thoughts from his youkai. He shouldn’t care what she heard, what she thought. She knew the truth of their relationship, that he was protecting her, nothing more. But he couldn’t help feeling like he’d betrayed her, and it was making him feel angry. _She’s not my fucking mate,_ he had to remind himself. _I’m not bound to her._ Her dark brown eyes stared up at him, waiting for… His heart dropped before leaping into his throat, choking him. “Do you think I would hit you?” he whispered in horror. The thought hadn’t even entered his head until he interpreted her posture, protective of her face yet ready to roll away if needed. “I would never raise a hand to a woman,” he told her, dropping to a crouch to make himself less intimidating. “How the hell have you been living until now?”

Kagome’s eyes filled with shame. “No, my lord. I just… you were so angry.”

Inuyasha sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. This woman brought out instincts he hadn’t even realized he had. “You are safe here. No matter what,” he assured her. He stood and turned to leave. “Speak of what you saw or heard to no one. Do you understand?” He heard her quietly agree. “We will eat with my family this evening. The ceremony will be in two days.”

Kagome squeaked out a surprised noise. “Two days?!”

“It is an auspicious day, or so I’m told. It will bring the marriage good fortune.”

“But my lord…”

“I will see you this evening,” he cut her off, exiting the room and pulling the shoji closed. He stood with his eyes closed for some time, breathing as he tried to calm his blood. His youkai had been more active in the last few weeks with her present than it had been in most of the previous thirty years of his existence. How did this slip of a girl he hardly knew bring his demon to the surface faster than any dangerous situation or amorous encounter he’d had in his adulthood? “Damnit,” he hissed, heading away from the cause of all the upheaval in his life.

* * *

The knock at her door didn’t startle her, but it did make her panic a little. Inuyasha was there to collect her and she wasn’t ready! The kind maid helping her dress called out that her lady was not yet finished and bustled about setting the final touches on her outfit. Kagome fought the instinct to hold her breath while she tied the obi perfectly. “There, my lady. I need only pin your hair…”

“Thank you so much but…” The maid ignored her, pulling a delicate set of combs from a box on the vanity and gently sweeping the sides of her hair up and away from her face. The combs nestled together to keep her hair rolled in place at the crown of her head while the rest draped down her back. Kagome let out a little sigh when she was able to survey her appearance in the small looking glass. She still looked like herself, just tamed a little.

She opened the shoji slowly and found it difficult to meet his eyes. After the argument earlier, with him storming out, she wasn’t sure how to interact with him. “Hm… Mother was right, they do suit you." The tone was flat, a statement of an uninteresting fact. Kagome did not feel flattered in the least. She winced when the maid tittered at what she perceived as the young lord complimenting his betrothed for her beauty. Inuyasha stiffened, seemingly realizing the same thing. He put out his arm for her to hold onto as a courtesy, knowing the kimono would severely restrict her movement. “My parents are waiting.”

“Yes, my lord.”

They made their way - slowly - toward the smaller family dining room in silence. Inuyasha tried to rein in his innate need to go everywhere quickly, knowing there was no way Kagome could keep up in her kimono. She looked lovely in it, refined and polished, but he could admit to himself that he preferred her usual "country" style and loose hair. It suited her better, she was more comfortable. _She has more spirit._ Inuyasha fought down a sneer at his thought, obviously driven by his youkai side. His youkai was drawn to her fiery demeanor, which he had not seen much of since bringing her to the keep and especially not when wearing the more formal clothing his mother had ordered made for her. _This isn’t the woman I met in the woods_ , he thought with a slight frown.

The dining room had been set for just them and his parents. It appeared as though Lord Inuyasha’s brother had better things to do. Kagome couldn’t blame him. What did he care about getting to know his younger brother’s unintentional bride? Kagome felt Inuyasha’s arm stiffen under her hand as his father’s golden eyes fell on them. “Father, Mother,” he muttered in a stilted voice. “Higurashi-san and this one would join you for dinner.” Kagome bowed her head slightly in deference but found herself blinking in confusion. This didn’t sound like the Inuyasha she knew either. He hadn’t been this stiff with his parents when they first met, had he?

“You need not remain so formal with your beloved, Inuyasha. Do not let our presence be a hindrance to you showing your affection.” Inuyasha swallowed a growl at his father’s teasing. He knew very well that there was no such relationship between them, yet he persisted in pushing him to present this image of a doting, lovesick fool. He glanced at Kagome, catching her blush.

“I think it would embarrass my b-be… bride to act that way in front of others,” he hedged.

“If that is the case, then I apologize.” Toga offered a slight bow of his head to Kagome. She bowed in return, both to acknowledge his apology and to hide how embarrassed she already was with just the attention. “You look lovely, my dear.” She bobbed another bow, unable to respond for fear of saying something ridiculous.

“I am so glad you decided to use the combs! They look stunning against your hair. I knew they would!” Izayoi gushed, coming to gently redirect Kagome from Inuyasha’s arm. She felt a hesitation before he let her go but didn’t acknowledge it. _He was just startled_ , she reasoned.

The meal was delicious and relatively tame. Kagome was a bit surprised by the lord and lady’s continued warmth toward her, even once it was only the four of them without outside observers. They knew Inuyasha held no real affection for her, but his father continued to rib him while his mother was friendly and light throughout. She almost felt like this was a real engagement. _Don’t be silly, Kagome_ , she reminded herself even as she smiled at something Inuyasha said to his mother about the garden. _He is only doing this out of guilt._ She missed the glance the two inu’s shared when her melancholic thoughts changed her scent.

“Kagome, my dear child, I have been told that you are something of an outdoorswoman?” Izayoi’s question caught her entirely off guard and she struggled to catch her meaning. “An accomplished archer and hunter, or so they say.”

Inuyasha’s ears perked in her direction in anticipation of her response. It was not a skill that most women possessed, and it was not exactly applauded in most circles. Humans in particular were touchy about women having skills commonly reserved for men. Women stayed inside, cooked, cleaned, tended gardens and raised children. Noble ladies barely did that. “Ah. Well my father insisted that I have the same training as my younger brother. I just… happened to do better in archery than he did. Sota is a far better hunter with a spear.”

“I would love to see you practice some time. I never learned much in the way of defense or survival skills.”

“You never needed them, my love,” Toga murmured with an affectionate smile.

“Except when you were injured and unable to fend for yourself,” she snapped playfully.

Toga blinked, then laughed. “Aa, you are correct. If you wish to learn, perhaps your new daughter could teach you. I don’t know that learning swordsmanship from myself or our son would be to your advantage.”

“Keh,” Inuyasha scoffed. Neither he nor his father were particularly good with sword form. Fighting for their lives? Naturally. But the more formal techniques were not their forte. So much of his skill was reflex that he doubted he could teach someone anything worthwhile. “I will have a target set up for you, if you’d like,” he murmured. Kagome blinked at the shy tone of his voice and felt her cheeks heat with the pleasure that filled her. He was acknowledging and encouraging her instead of telling her she had to stop!

“I would like that. My bow is at home…” she trailed off. Taking those last few things from her family home would be final. It would mean she was never returning there. Inuyasha reached under the table and gently tugged at the edge of her kimono, not quite touching her but showing he at least understood that she was feeling in need of some kind of comfort. “I-I need to practice with a variety of bow lengths anyway,” she said with a frail smile, breaking the silence she’d created with her awkward pause. Toga and Izayoi shared a brief communicative look while the younger couple was distracted.

After their son escorted his bride from the dining room, the taiyoukai and his mate strolled toward their chambers arm in arm. “I am worried for the girl. She is giving up everything. He still feels nothing for her?” Izayoi asked incredulously. “His youkai nearly surfaced when that brute injured her. I almost had to summon Sesshomaru to restrain him!”

“Hush now, my love. He is denying his feelings, that’s not the same as feeling nothing.” Toga’s voice was calm, soothing. While his son got his impulsiveness from him, his brash personality could be attributed at least somewhat to the fiery human woman at his side. She had to be to stand up to a snarling, half-feral and injured inuyoukai and tame him enough to fall in love. “He does not understand what his instincts are telling him, only that they are speaking, often loudly.” Izayoi sighed. “You said he was almost aggressive in his need to see her bruising. He needed to see the extent of the damage, smell how deep they ran, if the bones were broken. His nose needed confirmation of what happened almost as much as his eyes.”

“Hm, sounds like you’ve experienced it before.” Toga grinned, sweeping his wife off of her feet and into their room. He was able to easily unwind her from her clothing until he was free to look her over. “Not a scratch on me today.”

“Not at the moment. Though there may be a few bite marks later.” The inuyoukai’s smile was bordering on devilish as he approached her. Izayoi gasped, then huffed a laugh at her husband’s look.

“I welcome them,” she breathed. Toga chuckled darkly, then pounced.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wanted to get a few chapters up while I had the time (and energy) before the holidays steal it all, so updates will be a bit slower after this. Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The auspicious day arrives and Inuyasha begins to understand the weight of being married.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I melded some of what I know (read: little to nothing) about traditional marriages in Japanese culture with some more western style stuff, so fair warning.

The sun rose through a calm fog which dissipated quickly. Inuyasha breathed out a sigh as he finished putting his formal attire in order. He hated all this pompous nonsense. Why couldn't he and his betrothed just go to the temple, complete the marriage rights, and call it good? Having an audience was annoying and unnecessary. He didn't care about the other nobles being present. Hell, he didn't even care about his parents being there, if he was honest. This union wasn’t about them, it was about him and Kagome. Making promises. “Damnit.” Running his hands over his hair, he cringed. While the traditional marriage ceremony was a commitment of loyalty to one another, it also made no real promise of love, of devotion. Things that a mating bond would ensure.

Inuyasha couldn’t imagine Kagome being on board with taking part in the more carnal activities associated with marriage and, more importantly, mating. Not today, not with him and not without a lot of sake involved for both of them. His father had made sure there was a plentiful supply for the gathering to celebrate the marriage after the ceremony, but he didn’t intend to partake. He couldn’t risk doing something idiotic… like trying to sleep with his wife.

The inuhanyou hadn’t anticipated the feeling that would hit him in the gut when he saw her in her beautiful kimono. It wasn’t even the kimono really. He had seen plenty of women dressed very well in very intricate and delicate clothing being worn by their outfit rather than the other way around. That was not the case for Kagome in that moment. It was an adornment to her own natural beauty, amplified by the tantalizing sweep of her neck displayed by her hair pulled up with several combs. Someone had pinned a few large fresh blooms near her ear, mirroring the lightly applied pink on her cheeks. He could scent her nervousness from where he stood, but it was more residual than anything.

Her eyes lingered on him for a few moments, taking in his changed appearance. His hair was pulled up and away from his face, his ears prominently featured. His formal suikan was designed more for aesthetics than for ease of movement like his usual firerat, outlining his frame more favorably. Kagome’s scent reflected her surprise. “M-My lord,” she whispered in a shy greeting. He inclined his head, tongue-tied by her appearance and the effect her scent was having on his ability to think. Behind him, his father cleared his throat, a smug grin on his lips as he gestured for his son to get moving.

They made it through the ceremony without any problems. Kagome was stiff with anxiety throughout, but felt fortunate that as the bride, she was not required to say much. Internally she wanted to roll her eyes at the talk of serving her husband’s needs and being obedient. What surprised her was the faint look of irritation on Inuyasha’s face at the same point in the ceremony. Her staring at him from under her lashes must have caught his attention and he blatantly rolled his eyes so only she could see. Kagome bit her lower lip to keep from grinning.  _ At least we can agree on that. _

When it was over, she was led out of the temple on Inuyasha’s arm to her room so she could change into the less constricting tomesode reserved for the celebration and with sleeves appropriate for her new status.  _ Married. I’m married to Inuyasha now. _ A tiny stubborn part of her was giddy at the thought. Still, she knew that this meant nothing to her new husband except a new responsibility. She had hoped a little, in that first moment when he stopped short to stare at her, that he might at least find her attractive. She had known before the little exchange in the ceremony that he respected her at the very least. There was almost no hope that he would ever grow to love her. Not really.

A polite knock heralded the arrival of her husband to take her back to the festivities. He stared at her even longer this time, made more obvious by the fact that they were only a few steps away from each other instead of the length of a room. Kagome lowered her eyes to try and hide her flush. “You do clean up pretty well, huh?”

Kagome’s happy and embarrassed flush was exchanged for an angry one. Her eyes flashed her fury but she said nothing, swallowing back her irritation. Telling him off for his backhanded compliments would get her nowhere and only prove to him how unfit to be his bride she truly was. Kagome gave him a brittle smile in lieu of the snarl she felt appropriate. “Thank you, my lord. You look very nice in your formal wear.”

Inuyasha frowned at her back as she stepped past him. Why didn’t she snap at him? He smelled the anger on her easily, but she had trampled it down instead of expressing it to him. He had meant to rile her, to see what she would do now that they were married. He thought for sure that she would finally let him have it for teasing her. But she collected herself before he even realized she was doing it and moved on without him. He was confused.

“Are you coming, my lord?”

Inuyasha blinked at her where she stood, ready to go around the corner in the corridor to go to the main hall. “Oi, I’m supposed to be escorting you.” She tilted her head and smiled a little, motioning that she was waiting for him. Inuyasha grumbled, but quickly caught up to her. He looped his arm under hers to support her as they walked to the great hall. He noted that she was more mobile without his help, but knew it would be expected that they walk in together. Her dark indigo tomesode had only been embellished at the bottom, embroidered white clouds and cranes in flight cutting across her lower legs toward her hip. Her nape was still visible with her hair out of the way. Hair which he found himself tempted to bury his fingers in and let loose.

“Are you alright? You’re growling.”

The inuhanyou coughed as he choked back the growl he hadn’t even noticed. “Yes. J-Just not looking forward to all these people.” All the people who would be watching them, looking at her.  _ Seeing how beautiful she is _ . Kagome gasped sharply when he stopped her against the wall, his nose at her neck. Her fear was short lived, but it knocked some sense into him. “T-They’ll be expecting my scent on you,” he tried. It was true, the youkai in the room would notice the lack of his scent on her if he didn’t at least touch her some. But that was a thin excuse at best. His youkai was raging under the surface. He didn’t want to share her with anyone else, even just their eyes. Kagome was his now.

“If that’s all,” she breathed. Her head tilted aside, allowing him the space to press his face against her if he so chose. It was hardly a choice. His blood heated and his growl returned. The instinct to run his tongue along her neck was strong, but Inuyasha was able to suppress it, merely rubbing his cheek there instead. He felt her skin warm beneath his touch and the urge to bite her, even if it was just a nip, slammed him into reality. His parting from her was abrupt, clearly startling her. “My lord?”

“They’ll be expecting us,” was all he said, his voice cold. He needed to stay away from her.  _ Barely married an hour and I’m already…  _ Inuyasha shook his head, holding out his arm for his bewildered new wife.

* * *

Being married was harder than Inuyasha ever imagined it would be. He had to have his wife at his side for every formal function he attended. Dinners, visits to other nobles (which he despised doing anyway), patrolling the nearby villages and accepting visitors in the keep. Kagome was by his side almost every day for several hours at a time.  **_This wouldn’t be so hard if she were our mate._ ** He bit his lip to hide the snarl that fought to be free at the thought. His youkai had become even more adamant since the incident in the hallway prior to their wedding gathering.

He had managed to keep himself in check that entire night. He hadn’t touched more than half a cup of sake, carefully nursing it the whole party to keep up the illusion that he was enjoying himself and drinking just like all the other men. It was not entirely unexpected for them to be separated for a portion of the time with the ritual ribbing of the groom and the embarrassment of the bride by other women as they warned her of what was to come on her wedding night. He caught a few humans whispering that she should not be surprised by anything as the suspicion was that they had already engaged in such acts. The youkai women knew otherwise and happily teased Kagome until she flushed. He did rescue her a few times, taking her to a corner to at least make the crowd  _ think _ he was sneaking kisses with his new wife. Kagome simply closed her eyes and leaned into his chest for short bursts, allowing his scent to layer on hers and taking the respite it provided.

Inuyasha was a little stunned by the easy trust she had in him, despite everything he had done. He had demanded so much of her, ruined everything for her, and she still treated him like her safe haven. He cherished those little moments for what they were. Quiet, brief, glimpses of connection. She trusted him, if only slightly more than the others around them, and she allowed him an intimacy no other was permitted. To see her tired, weak, if only for a moment. As soon as they parted, her facade of a pleasant and happy bride was back in place so she could greet nobles she had never met and pretend she cared about their saccharine well wishes.

With his hearing, he was not ignorant of the occasional comment of surprise that he, a hanyou, had found someone to marry. Were he younger and more into his cups he might have jumped at the slight. Instead, he reminded himself of what his mother had been telling him for years after getting into spats with others about his heritage. Responding violently or at the very least, rudely, would only reinforce the idea that he was lesser, uncontrolled, or stupid. He took measured breaths and tried to stick closer to Kagome when that happened, savoring her scent and the calming effect it had on his system.

Now, over a month into their marriage, he was still holding out against the onslaught of her presence and scent on a daily basis, but only barely. Inuyasha was beginning to suspect that his father was intentionally assigning him duties that would require him to spend more time with her in order to break down his defenses. Were he less aware of her, he might have thought that Kagome was in on it too, but she was often more surprised than he was.

Today, she had stared at him a little skeptically when he found her in the garden with his mother to tell her they needed to go greet and record the new batch of babies for the year. It was the first time he thought she might say no. “So there’s a whole group of people with new babies just… waiting for us?” she asked him. He looked to his mother for help.

“Each year, we try to take a count of how many babies have been born in the territory. There is a small gift box given to each family in return for helping us account for our people. Usually, Miroku helps me do this.” Izayoi hid a smirk behind the small bouquet of flowers she was putting together. “However, as the newest pair in the keep, it makes sense for you two to do it this year.”

“How come Oyaji doesn’t have to do it?” Inuyasha complained. Izayoi tsked, popping her son in the nose with her bouquet for speaking of his father in such a way. “Ack!” He sneezed a few times and glared petulantly at his mother from out of reach.

Kagome sat back and stifled a smile through the whole exchange. As mature as he could be while out completing his duties, Inuyasha showed a completely different face when alone with her and even with just his mother present. She hoped it was due to a level of trust in them. “I can ask Miroku-sama to assist me if you would rather not go, M-Inuyasha.”

With her eyes lowered in deference, she missed the quick interplay of looks passed between mother and son. He clearly wanted to take his wife up on the offer and his mother was forbidding him from weaseling his way out of something he didn’t want to do. He tossed her a look of exasperated defeat. “No. It would look bad if I sent out my new wife with that lecherous monk.”

Kagome’s gazed snapped up to his, disbelief at his words. “Lecherous?” Inuyasha rolled his eyes and motioned for her to follow him. “Wait, are we going right now?”

“In about an hour. Your maid is already waiting to help you dress.”

While asking her to go on this excursion had been the main purpose, he also hoped to get some kind of reaction out of his wife by putting her in a less than ideal situation. He couldn’t explain why, only that he needed her to lose her cool. So far, she had smothered any response that might be seen as rude. This time, he was hoping she just might… “Oh. I see.”  _ So much for that idea _ . She bowed and hurried off to her room.

It wasn’t until they were in the village, lines of people awaiting them, that Inuyasha saw the true opportunity in this event. There were babies everywhere. Kagome’s eyes were like saucers as they exited the small carriage. They were lead to the headman’s house and given places to sit in front of his porch to greet and account for all of the babies. Some were nearly a year, while others were only days old. Kagome’s scent changed sharply when several of the women gave her the opportunity to hold their babies.

“I… are you sure?” she asked one young human mother of a week-old hanyou infant. The mother smiled and nodded. He was tiny, wrinkled and had fox ears drooping on either side of his head. He didn’t entirely understand the appeal of holding something that looked like a little old man until he sensed the change in Kagome. Inuyasha watched the power of a baby work on his new wife. Her scent softened in a way he had never smelled before and her body seemed to melt around his little form to protect him.  **_We could do that. Make her feel like that again with her own pup. Our pup_ ** . “My lord Inuyasha, isn’t he precious?” she breathed, pulling him out of an argument with his youkai.

“Cute,” he grumbled. “Don’t forget to mark him down in the hanyou column. Kitsune, right?” he asked the mother. She nodded and smiled proudly.

“He is very handsome, ma’am. Congratulations.” Kagome handed him back to his mother with obvious reluctance. “Thank you for letting me hold him.”

“Thank you, milady.” The young woman bowed, tucking her newborn into a sling across her chest and accepting the gift box from Inuyasha. “My lord, congratulations on your marriage.” A nod of acknowledgement met her words and then she was gone.

“How sweet. His little ears…” Kagome murmured, watching them leave. Her husband’s eyes met hers for a moment in awe. She blushed and pointedly looked down at the scroll she was documenting on. Inuyasha swallowed down the lump in his throat.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kagome receives new from home and approaches Inuyasha for help. Inuyasha is torn on how to fulfill his duties to both his wife and the territory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we finally reach the chapter that has the premise that inspired the entire story!

It wasn’t often that Kagome visited her husband during the day and certainly not in his study. She knew he was busy and that her presence would be disruptive. Especially now when he was holding an audience with a few advisors and courtiers about crop yields from the territories they protected. It was a delicate balance of give and take that had to be managed within each lesser lord’s domain and for the entire inuyoukai territory as a whole. If her news wasn’t so pressing, she would have waited until later to try to speak with him.

“Kagome. I did not expect to see you here.” Inuyasha’s golden eyes glanced from hers to the men standing around the room, curious as to her presence. “What is it?”

Kagome fought the urge to wring her hands. “I received a letter from my mother regarding my brother, my lord.” One dark eyebrow rose in question. “He is about to turn fourteen and there are no apprenticeship opportunities in the small village near my family’s home.” She winced at admitting that her brother would have to take an apprenticeship at all. A lord’s son, even a lesser lord, was not supposed to work other than managing his land. Kagome almost wished that she’d waited. At the same time, knowing that Inuyasha would feel pressured to keep up his act with others present had pushed her to see him right away. “My mother also misses me terribly and I have not seen her in quite some time.”

She found herself fascinated by the way he could somehow grit his teeth and smile at the same time. No one but her was any wiser to the brittle nature of that smile. "Yes, my love. I will consider your brother’s future. In the meantime, I will make the necessary arrangements for you to travel to your mother’s home." Kagome gave a short bow and left as soon as he'd dismissed her, fleeing to the safety of her chamber. How had this become her existence? How was she going to continue this farce for the rest of her life? Collapsing on the end of the bed, she struggled not to cry.

Her mother’s letter was not clear about the details, only that she was not well and Sota would be left alone if something happened. At the very least, Kagome hoped to say her goodbyes to her mother. If she could be helped, healed, Kagome would do just about anything. At the end of the day, she had to convince Inuyasha to take her brother on as an apprentice to one of the keep's artisans or he would be left without a future no matter what happened to her mother.

There was a knock at the shoji and the young woman swiped at her cheeks to clear away the evidence. "Come in," she called.

Immediately upon him entering, she knew she'd angered her husband. "You knew I couldn't refuse you with the others there. That's why you…" He paused, nose twitching. "Have you been crying?" Kagome turned her face away and stood to go to the window. She was startled by the grip of his large hand on her upper arm. As he pulled her to face him, tears gathered in her eyes despite her every effort to keep them at bay. "Woman…" She tried again to turn away, but he gripped her chin a bit roughly and forced her eyes to his. "What aren't you telling me?"

Kagome ignored the way his tone softened. It was a fluke. He didn't actually care. "My… my mother is ill. I’m worried that she'll not last the winter."

His golden eyes studied her. "Why not tell me that instead of making excuses about your brother?" Kagome's gaze dropped to his chest. His strong presence always made her insides feel strange, but the addition of his hold made her feel warm as well. "You thought I would deny you," he growled. Studying her face, he saw no denial of his assessment. "Go then. If she is well enough to travel, bring her here along with the boy. I will not have you running off for weeks or months."

"My Lord…"

"Inuyasha."

"Thank you," she breathed, "Inuyasha." He grunted acceptance of her gratitude and released her. Kagome tried to ignore the way his fingers lingered on her arm before he scowled and turned to leave. “My… Inuyasha. I did not mean to mislead you. I thought my brother’s future was more pressing.”

“Your mother needs tending. We will discuss where to place the boy when you all return here.” He paused to assess her for a moment. “Miroku will accompany you. If I wasn’t due to survey the opposite side of the territory for the beginning of harvest season, I would take you myself.”

Kagome's surprised face in response to his poorly hidden regret caught him off guard. "I-I appreciate your thoughtfulness," she whispered. Was he that callous to her that she thought he would deny her request, send her unguarded, do nothing to help her? He kept his distance to be respectful, to keep from putting them in a situation she was not interested in, but he didn’t think of himself as being cruel. “I will let you know when I am ready to go. I must write to them to let them know I’m coming and prepare to leave if my mother is able.” He nodded his agreement and left the room.

“Miroku!” he called, entering the monk’s office with a bang of the shoji. Indigo eyes blinked at him in exasperation. “Bouzu, I need you to pack your things for short travel. You need to take Kagome to her mother.”

“And why, pray tell, is that suddenly my responsibility?” he asked with a raised eyebrow. Inuyasha growled. “I am not objecting to spending more time with your lovely wife, Inuyasha, simply trying to understand why it is me and not you.”

“I have to go survey the western edge of the territory before harvest season begins,” he snarled.

“Oh, your turn this year?” Miroku fought a smile at how easy it was to read his friend. “Would you prefer that I survey and you accompany your wife?”

Inuyasha was about to protest, then paused. “Y-You would do that?” he asked quietly.

“Hai, Inuyasha-sama,” his advisor teased. “You have ordered me to take your place in surveying the western territory where I will evaluate the bounty ready for harvest.”

The inuhanyou opened his mouth to retort, then narrowed his eyes at the human male giving him a sly look. “Oi, you better leave that slayer village alone.”

“Me? I don’t know what you mean, Inuyasha,” Miroku batted his eyelashes, the picture of innocence.

“That lady slayer will lay you flat again if you don’t stop harassing her.”

Miroku developed a truly evil smirk. “I can only hope she lays me flat. Though there are plenty of other… positions I may find myself in.” Inuyasha gagged.

“Maybe I should go.”

“Your wife will be so lonely without you. I will gladly comfort her-erk!” The monk was against the wall by his robes, the wind knocked out of him. “I am kidding, my friend. It is a joke only!” he squeaked out. He took in the feral look in his lord’s eyes and realized his mistake. Inuyasha had been so adamant that he did not care for his wife, that he only married her to protect her. Miroku was quickly learning that perhaps even Inuyasha did not know his own heart. “I would never lay a finger on her.”

“Keh. Damn right, you wouldn’t. Not if you want to keep it.”

“Your possessiveness is showing.” The young inuhanyou lord growled fiercely, then dumped his adviser into his chair. “So you will leave soon for the Higurashi home and I will set out for the west.”

“Stay away from the taijiya, bouzu, I’m serious.”

“Ah, but what if she cannot stay away from me?” Miroku smirked, waggling his eyebrows. Inuyasha snorted in disgust, rolling his eyes. “Worry not, my friend, I will get the job done, ensure our bounty for the coming winter. I might even say a blessing or two while I’m out there!” Miroku was downright jolly now. Inuyasha almost regretted letting the wily monk talk him into switching duties.

Almost.

Kagome was surprised by the change in plans, but even he could see the relief in her eyes. She had interacted with Miroku only enough to know he was very intelligent, but also likely to cause trouble. Inuyasha sighed. Keeping his distance from his wife was going to be tough when he was expected to ride with her on the horse for at least an hour. The last time they were in this position, they’d both been so awkward, it was impossible to focus on anything but how to touch each other as little as possible. This time around, that kind of stiffness would draw attention. Their retinue was small, just them, a carriage and two soldiers, but both were canine youkai. They would notice if their scents changed.

The kitsune, Shippo, was young, friendly and perhaps a little mischievous. The inuyoukai, Nobuo, was an older retainer of the Inu no Taisho and had been serving him for nearly a century. Shippo was making the poor man crazy with his harmless pranks and jokes. Inuyasha, who would have been equally annoyed in other circumstances, was pleased for the distraction it made for his wife. Kagome would laugh quietly when Shippo managed to pull one over on the stoic Nobuo, who felt it undignified to stoop to the kitsune’s level, but eventually felt the need to retaliate.

“This is not befitting a soldier in the service of the great Inu no Taisho,” Nobuo growled.

“He doesn’t know the shit my father has pulled on Sesshomaru and me over the years,” Inuyasha murmured in Kagome’s ear. She jumped a little at the suddenness of his interjection, then giggled. “Never let the runt and my father join forces. We’ll be doomed.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” she whispered back, smiling at him over her shoulder. Little did she know how that small smile affected his insides. Inuyasha felt like mush all of a sudden. He couldn’t keep the goofy grin from his own face for a moment. “I know it really hasn’t been that long, but it feels like ages since I was home.”

Inuyasha wasn’t sure how to respond. There was a gut reaction to her calling this place they were going, and not the place they’d come from, home. It stabbed him a little in tender places he didn’t realize he had. Shaking it off, he adjusted himself in the saddle which forced Kagome to lean back into his chest. She startled at first, tension in her frame, then relaxed into him. It was nice. Feeling her warmth in the crisp morning, knowing she was safe… Inuyasha sighed, unconsciously leaning into her in return. “Does the time pass so uncomfortably?” he rumbled in her ear.

Kagome tensed for a moment, her scent shifting. “N-No. I meant no offense…”

“I’m not offended. I only wanted to know if you are in need of something I am not providing that would make the keep feel more like your home.”

She didn’t respond right away, clearly giving his explanation some thought. Inuyasha couldn’t ignore the effort she was obviously making to be honest with him when he had called her on misdirecting him before. “I will feel better knowing my family is cared for. We… we have had to rely on ourselves since my father died.”

“You’re close with them. Your mother and brother.”

“Yes.” Inuyasha pushed down the guilt at having separated her from her family. He was fairly close with his parents, his mother in particular, but he didn’t truly understand the type of relationship he sensed Kagome had with her younger brother. He and Sesshomaru barely tolerated each other on a good day. When he was little, Sesshomaru had a tendency to brush him off like an annoying insect. It had hurt when he was a kid, but now he understood a little better. His brother was much more like his own mother than their father and he was nearly five decades older than Inuyasha. Even at thirty-some years old, he wasn’t sure how he would handle a new younger sibling. A child of his own though…

The inuhanyou swallowed thickly as his wife incidentally shifted against him in the saddle just as his thoughts turned toward territory he had sworn off. His body tried to ignore his insistence to remain calm, heating and pressing against her. Luckily, the volume of fabric between them - and the fact that her backside was growing numb - meant she felt almost nothing. Inuyasha bit the inside of his lip to the point of pain to stomp down his reaction.  **_She would make an excellent mother for our pups_ ** , his youkai purred beneath the surface, as if to mock his efforts to be a gentleman. He couldn't deny that - look at how she handled the baby counting fiasco - but he also knew she was nowhere near comfortable enough with him for that to be a possibility. And he wasn't quite sure how to get them there.

Inuyasha had little experience with intimate relationships. On his human night, almost a decade ago, he'd gotten drunk in a brothel with Miroku. It was an experience he hardly recalled and, in any event, didn't particularly want to remember. He was clumsy, overeager and had likely made a complete fool of himself. The young woman hadn't known who he was, so she didn't fawn over him to inflate his ego. She didn't berate him for his inexperience, but Inuyasha knew she hadn't really enjoyed it either.

The thought of being that inept with Kagome made him cringe. If they ever got to the point where even just the physical side of mating were possible, he wanted it to be an experience she wanted to repeat. His wife dreading going to bed with him was the last thing he wanted. He had never been fully intimate with another woman since that first time and never while hanyou. He had read enough material and had enough unsolicited verbal lessons from the monk to at least feel confident in what he could do. He had no idea what Kagome would be comfortable with or what she might like.

Shippo interrupted his thoughts with the announcement that they were nearing the river and would stop for a minute to water the horses. Kagome's scent changed as the riverbank came into view. Inuyasha pulled her a little closer without really realizing it. A moment passed before the reason for her anxious scent hit him.

"I don't smell anyone else nearby," he whispered to her. "I won't let him near you again, I promise." Kagome breathed deeply, letting it out slowly between her lips. Finally, she nodded. Inuyasha dismounted first so he could help her down, standing by her a moment longer to make sure her legs weren't numb.

He kept his ears perked and his eyes trained on their surroundings to make sure nothing got past him or their guards. As alert as he was, he couldn’t miss the relieved sigh his wife let out when she was able to take a drink of fresh water and dab some at her throat to cool herself down. The droplets trailing over her nape as she lifted her hair out of the way to further vent the heat clinging to her neck made him lick his lips.

“My lord?”

Inuyasha’s attention snapped to the kitsune who had snuck up on him while he was distracted. “What is it?”

“We should keep moving. The sun will set soon and the road will be difficult for the horses on the way back.”

He nodded, glancing at Kagome as she stretched her back. “We are not far from the Higurashi home. We should reach it and be able to leave well before dark.” They got moving a few minutes later, Kagome wincing when Inuyasha helped her back up onto the horse. “Sore?”

She blushed and nodded a little. Inuyasha grimaced in sympathy. He wasn’t very used to riding either, preferring to travel under his own power, but he was made of much sturdier stuff than his human wife. They relaxed into one another with less awkwardness this time, Kagome’s gentle weight against his chest making him sigh despite himself.

The Higurashi home seemed greyer than he remembered it, as if the life had drained out of it when his wife was taken from its walls. Inuyasha noticed Kagome’s posture as she too took in the changed appearance of her childhood home. He could see how she was fairly vibrating with the need to run to the door. As soon as their eyes met, her brown seeking permission from his amber, he nodded. She nearly sprinted in, the door clattering against the wall as she entered. He heard her calling her for her mother, relief releasing his shoulders as he heard a weak female voice respond.

Kagome’s mother was in bad shape, but not dire, if his nose was any judge. She would be seen by the doctor as soon they returned to the keep. He eavesdropped as she whispered directions to her daughter while she gathered her mother’s most important items. Inuyasha was a little surprised that there had been little to no resistance to leaving their home and coming to the keep instead. He had tried his best to stay out of the way, not wanting to invade this personal moment, but had to help Kagome remove a large tapestry from the wall when she couldn’t reach. The inuhanyou was a bit concerned by the lack of substantial belongings that occupied the Higurashi home.  _ Had I known how much they were struggling... _

It took Shippo and Nobuo some time to find the boy, off hunting to keep food on their table. When they had collected him as well, they began the process of packing their meager possessions into the carriage. Kagome chose to ride inside with her mother, Sota riding their horse while Inuyasha kept pace alongside. His youkai did not appreciate the distance, but as a whole, he understood why she needed to be with the elder Higurashi.

The same way his nose needed to know she was safe after their run-in with Koga, Kagome’s eyes needed the confirmation that her mother was alright. He could hear them talking softly, Kagome explaining how well taken care of she was in the keep and assuring her mother she was fine. Lady Higurashi was, in turn, reassuring her daughter of her health despite the intermittent coughing fits. All three youkai made sure to keep the horses at a good pace and on the road so they could make it back to the keep before the sun set completely.

At the keep, they were met with his mother’s concerned face, the doctor in tow. Inuyasha took a brief moment to nuzzle his mother in greeting before anyone could notice. Listening to the soft fear in Kagome’s voice as she spoke to her ill mother the whole way home had constricted his chest. No only from knowing she had felt this fear and separation so keenly and he had done nothing about it, but also from the need to see Izayoi. He’d hardly been away from her for most of his life and he realized what a painful weight he had forced on Kagome.  _ She handled it with such grace, I didn’t even notice. I’m such a bastard _ , he thought as he went back to help his wife and her mother out of the carriage. The pure gratitude in Kagome’s eyes was enough to soothe his self loathing for a time.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Miroku drives a hard bargain for the bounty he promised. Inuyasha visits Kagome upon Miroku's return.

"Oh. It's you." Her deadpan delivery made him smile despite how insulting she intended it to be. "The lord's son dump surveying duty on you again?" Miroku let his grin grow. "Tch. Well go on then," she said, making a shooing motion with her hand.

"My dear, lovely, Sango-san. The lord's son did hand over the duty to me, as you say. However, he did so at my request so he could accompany his new wife to visit her family on the other side of the territory." He dipped into a low bow.

"The puppy got married?" Sango exclaimed with some surprise, her body shifting out of its closed posture. Clearly intrigued, it pulled her from her feigned indifference.

"Indeed." Miroku captured the closest hand and pressed the back to his cheek. Sango flushed slightly. "Perhaps he will not be the only…" The monk yelped as the tajiya dragged him by his ear into the storage hut they had been standing in the doorway of. "Sango, my love…"

"Stop it. We have  _ talked _ about this!" Miroku opened his mouth to interrupt, but paused when she glared at him. "I am not marriage material."

"That is patently false. You are perfect marriage material. Especially to me." The silver-tongued monk moved into her personal space until she couldn't deny the pull of his body. "You are strong, intelligent, compassionate. Beautiful beyond words," he whispered against her throat. Sango sighed, allowing him - against her better judgement - to kiss along her neck. “We are very compatible, you and I.”

"It doesn't matter what we want," she tried to argue. "Until Kohaku is old enough to lead the village, I am not free to do anything."

"Ah, but as I recall, he reaches the age of maturity for a chief in less than three months."

"You've got everything planned out, do you?" She whimpered when his teeth dragged along her ear.

“I told Inuyasha that I would ensure a bounty come winter.” His hands slid across her hips, pulling her into him. “I did not mean just the fields.” 

The tajiya growled at him, pushing him back. “We… without marriage… everyone would…”

“Marry me, Sango. Tomorrow.”

“Miroku,” she breathed. “I’ve told you…” She paused at the look in his eyes. “You’re serious this time.”

The corner of his mouth lifted slightly in a smirk. “I have always been serious about you. This time I’m not taking no for an answer. Not when I know you want it as much as I do.” The tajiya took in a shaky breath. “Sango. Will you please do me the honor of becoming my wife? Allow me to cherish you. Let me father your children. I will care for you until my dying breath.”

“I… Miroku…”

“Please?”

She had never heard him utter a more sincere request in the more than five years they had known one another. He had always flirted with her, had eventually convinced her to take it further. Sango used to feel shame at how easily she had given in to Miroku’s offers of pleasure. They had never made the mistake of risking everything, but came close enough for her to have been tempted on more than one occasion. He had asked her to marry him, to bear him children in a multitude of ways. This simple, straightforward supplication unraveled her resistance to him.

“I cannot leave the village until after Kohaku takes full leadership,” she whispered weakly. He insisted that he understood. “I...I don’t know if living in the keep would be best. There are youkai who don’t agree with…”

“All those under the Inu no Taisho’s roof understand the necessity of tajiya. Not every youkai is peaceful or willing to follow the law. Not every youkai has the strength, compassion or willingness to protect others from youkai who do harm.” Miroku stood back for a brief moment. “What is it you are truly afraid of, my love?”

“What if you change your mind?” she whispered into the folds of his robes, clutching them in her hands. “I’m not a typical woman.”

Miroku tsked under his breath before taking her cheek in his palm and raising her eyes to his. “That is exactly why I want you and no other, Sango. I would not want you to be anything other than exactly as you are.” She started to give excuses and he simply took her lips with his to stop them. She whimpered faintly at the insistence of his kiss, the determination to have her melt completely into him. “I love you for you,” he murmured.

“I-I love you too.” The monk grinned. It was the first time she had actually responded in kind. “The monk here might not approve of us marrying so quickly.”

Miroku smirked. “Mushin is an old friend.” His smirk grew. “I may have told him several years ago that I had every intention of marrying you and to be ready at any time to complete the rites.” Sango’s dark eyes widened as a blush took her cheeks. Miroku let out a sharp breath as her hand connected with his chest and he chuckled. “I wanted to be prepared just in case.” His lovely tajiya’s flush increased as she realized exactly why they might need the monk to be ready to marry them without warning. There had been several moments when they had barely kept from taking things “too far” and would certainly have needed someone on hand to make an honorable couple of them.

“A-Alright. If he agrees and Kohaku approves…” She was interrupted by Miroku sweeping her into a hug, letting out a whoop of joy as he swung her around. “Miroku!” she gasped, a laugh belying her stern tone.

“I promise you, I will make sure you never regret your decision.” He was giddy, placing tiny kisses all over her face. Sango could only blush and smile, hugging him tight.

~~~~~~~~~~

“So you’ve finally decided then,” Kohaku stated dryly. Sango blinked in slight surprise. “You think I didn’t know what you and that monk were up to all this time?” He scoffed. “I’m nineteen, not an idiot.” Sango opened her mouth several times in an attempt to say something, but came up empty. “I knew it would happen eventually.”

That did snap her out of her silence. “Oh really? I was not planning on it until this morning. How did you know?” she asked, her tone sharp. Well accustomed to his sister’s flares of temper, Kohaku crossed his arms over his chest and stared her down in the same way she was trying to do to him. 

Several years before, he was more intimidated by his very strong and capable sister. Sango was always his hero growing up, still was to a certain extent. She had stepped into a role that was not traditional for women and had excelled even above most of the men she trained with. When plague took almost half the village - including their parents - she rallied supplies to care for survivors who were still ill and organized how to distribute the uncontaminated food until help could arrive from the inuyoukai lord. His sister should have become the chieftess of the village. She was smart, brave, and she was a born leader. But the village traditions and laws stated it had to be a male. Kohaku still suspected that his father had been intending to change that, and would have, had he not been taken by the illness that struck so suddenly.

“You taught me to look for details. The things people don’t say,” he finally responded, giving his sister a level look. She sighed and nodded, knowing he was actually very adept at reading people. He had always been a quiet child, but one that took in a lot by watching and listening. Sango had trained him to use it like a combat skill, reading his social and political opponents as well as the youkai they had to capture or destroy. It had been a great asset to him, especially when he was notably smaller or younger than his adversary. “Will you leave?”

“Yes. Miroku is the young lord’s advisor. He cannot live away from the keep.” Sango struggled with what to tell her brother. It had always been the plan that she would remain in the village for her lifetime, the way most tajiya did. Many normal village women left to live with their new husbands in other villages, but tajiya stayed in the village and Sango had not planned to be an exception even though she was female. “We already talked about Miroku permanently taking the survey duty of our side of the territory twice a year, so we would visit at least that often.”

Kohaku nodded. It was a good compromise, he had to admit. That kind of travel was not easy on a regular basis if one didn’t have the means. “That would be good. We will… miss you here, Ane-ue.” The look they shared was soft. They had been there for each other when they had no one else. They had held the village together when it was falling apart. There was a small part of him that, even knowing this was coming, felt unprepared for the reality now that he was face to face with it. “I will try to be the best chief I can.”

“Kohaku, you won’t just try. You will succeed. I know you. You are the best chief this village will have known in a long time.” She took a soft, shuddering breath to hold back her emotions. “We are not at war with youkai like we have read about. We need a leader who understands how to show compassion as much as bravery. Who knows what we need to trade for as much as how to wield a weapon. Who can use intelligence to keep this village healthy, safe and prospering. You are that chief,” she told him with a quiet intensity he was well familiar with. She would suffer no arguments from him and she meant every single word.

“Thank you.” Her resolute nod made him smile. “Now when is this monk you call husband stealing you away?” Sango laughed, pulling him into a brief hug before telling him all about their plans. She would remain in the village until he was of age and had been acknowledged by all the families as chief, then Miroku would return for her and they would go to live in his small wing of the keep. Being the young lord’s advisor, while a somewhat harrowing job given his superior’s temper, afforded him a good living that would more than provide for them. “I know I tease you, but I am happy for you,” he admitted.

Sango couldn’t help a tear despite her determination not to make this conversation emotional. “Thank you.”

* * *

  
  


Her husband was not prone to drunkenness, but it appeared as though he had been convinced to have a few more cups than he was typically wont this evening.  _ Probably that sneaky monk _ , she thought. He had returned from his survey bordering on gleeful, dragging Inuyasha away to talk as soon as he arrived. Kagome stood warily in the doorway, unsure why he was lounging against her door frame so late at night. “Ya gonna let me in, or not, Wife?” he slurred. Her hesitation was taken as permission and he sauntered in and stood staring at her out of the corner of his eye. “Close’at,” he commanded. Kagome complied but remained where she was. “Tch, what are you doing?”

“What are  _ you _ doing?” she retorted. This was all very unusual. He slunk back toward her, taking her hand in his and tracing the knuckles with his thumb.

His touch, which had never been harsh to her, was still much gentler than she would have expected. "K'gome. C'mere." She hesitated before allowing his tugging to bring her to the futon. "Mm. You smell nice," he muttered as he traced the line of her neck with his nose. This was not her usual aloof husband. The one who looked past her rather than at her. Who pretended to adore her in front of others because it was what was expected of him. The one who couldn't stand her because he loved someone else.

"No," she gasped, pulling from his hold. She didn't understand why tears were filling her eyes. "Inuyasha, no. You don't know what you are doing."

He growled lowly, prowling across the futon until he cornered her against the wall. Trapped, all Kagome could do was wait and hope he came to his senses. His face was suddenly so close she could feel his hot breath on her cheek. She jumped when she felt his lips on her cheekbone, taking away the tears that had escaped.

"Don’t cry. Hate it when you cry." His words whispered across the slightly damp surface left from his lips. His mouth moved to the curve of her neck, tongue flicking out to taste her. His lips explored more skin, fingers pulling the collar of her yukata aside. He mouthed the tendon that ran from her shoulder to her neck, heat and moisture from his breath causing her skin to tingle. Kagome sucked in a gasp when he gently bit her, her body stiffening in shock. This wasn’t right. Inuyoukai only bit their mates. He would regret everything the moment he sobered. He would be so upset with her for taking advantage of his uninhibited state and truly bonding them after he had clearly been avoiding doing exactly that. He would hate her more than he already did. 

Suddenly she couldn't help the release of her anxiety, her pent up feelings. Tears cascaded from her eyes and sobs wracked her frame as she pressed her palms to his chest. "Kagome… Damn!" The inuhanyou scrambled, simultaneously trying to comfort her and to get as far away from her as possible. Obviously he was no longer as drunk as he'd been previously. "I didn't mean to… I shouldn't have…" With a frustrated growl, he bolted from the room, the shoji clattering closed and nearly coming off their tracks in his haste to put a barrier between them. 

Kagome sobbed out her fear, her heartbreak, her sense of hopelessness. They were trapped in a marriage where they both wanted out, but for very different reasons. "Why couldn't I have met him first?" she whimpered into her futon. 

She knew that it was naive of her to ever have hoped to find love, to actually marry a man she loved and who loved her. It was not likely for a woman of her station to marry for anything other than the benefit of her family. It was supposed to be honorable to marry "well" and bring good fortune to one's family. So why did she feel like the lowest scum? Inuyasha deserved to be with the woman he loved. With someone who was his social match. Instead he was shackled to the daughter of a lesser lord who he'd taken to wife because people jumped to conclusions. To protect  _ her _ honor, he'd married her over a misunderstanding.

A misunderstanding which had completely changed her world. She didn’t know how or when, but she had fallen in love with her husband. A man whose heart would forever be out of her reach because someone else sheltered it. A man who had to put himself in a stupor to stomach touching her as a husband should. A man who was beautiful, gruffly kind, protective and honorable to a fault.

After crying late into the night, she was numb enough to think a little more clearly. If she could find a way to release him from his promise to her, he would be free to offer for Kikyo's hand as he had originally intended. Unbidden, the image of the two of them in the garden came to mind. The gentleness he touched his lover with, the obvious affection in his gaze, was painful to remember. Only in a drunken state had he shown his own wife such a tender display. He didn’t love her, didn’t want her. If she could prove that… 

"He never touched me." Not in the way that others had suspected and certainly not in the way that a husband would have more than three months into a marriage. They should have long since lain together and she should already wear his mark as his mate. There should be rumors about when she would birth their first pup. But the other youkai who had the nose for it knew they had not yet even shared a bed. She had not heard any whispers about it, but she imagined Inuyasha had.  _ Probably why he showed up like that tonight, _ she thought in frustration. He was only trying to fulfill an expectation, an obligation. His duty. That he had to get so drunk to even consider trying to touch her was telling. Did he find her that repulsive? Kagome knew she was no elegant beauty like Kikyo or Lady Izayoi, but she wasn’t hideous either.

She knew what she had to do to make this right, for both of them, she just wasn’t sure how to make it happen.

“Miroku-sama. He would know.” Kagome resolved to speak to her husband’s advisor in the morning. The sooner she could free Inuyasha, the happier they both would be.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inuyasha is confronted with the results of Kagome's plan to speak with Miroku. Kagome struggles with the reality of leaving her husband and her marriage behind.  
> Mama Higurashi recalls a time when Inuyasha humbly asked for her forgiveness.

Kagome stood anxiously beside Miroku in Inuyasha’s study, the monk looking grim. The inuhanyou stood slowly from his desk, eyeing them cautiously. His ears twitched at the sound of his wife’s racing heart. What had her so nervous? And why did she need his advisor as backup?

"Kagome, what…"

"Her ladyship has asked for an annulment based on the premise that your marriage has not been consummated." Inuyasha was blatantly shocked by the announcement. Kagome could feel the weight of his gaze, but could not find the strength to meet his eyes. "Her scent reflects her claim. It’s been confirmed twice. Do you have any evidence to the contrary, my lord?"

He was silent for a long time. Too long. Kagome felt like her heart was going to beat out of her chest. Would he try to refute the claim? Would he happily accept the out he’d been given? Finally, Kagome looked up to find furious golden eyes piercing her through. He stared, obviously trying to learn something from her in that look. She tried, and likely failed, to keep her face neutral. "If the lady prefers not to remain married to this one, far be it from me to impede her. You are free, Higurashi-san." The distance he’d placed between them with his words alone made her feel like a tie had been severed. And it hurt. But she was doing this as much for him as for herself. Without another word, he spun on his heel and left the room. Kagome felt the strength leave her legs then, her knees hitting the tatami hard enough to jar her teeth together.

"Lady Kagome!" Her soon to be ex-husband's advisor knelt beside her, gripping her elbow to steady her. "Please, reconsider this course of action. You will suffer." He hadn't wanted to even suggest the idea, but the young lady was smart. She knew there had to be a way to free them both and if he'd tried to lie, Miroku had a feeling she would have known right away.

Kagome sobbed out a laugh. "Not more than I have made him suffer, Miroku-sama. He has made it very clear that I am a hindrance to his happiness. Thank you for your concern, but I can no longer keep up this pretense. His lordship deserves better."

"But Kagome-sama…" She held up her hand to stall his argument. The monk sighed heavily. "I will prepare the documents necessary to properly annul the marriage. It will take at least two days. Please take that time to decide on what you plan to do next." She didn’t respond, simply got to her feet when her legs allowed and trailed up to her room.

She had been staring out of her window for over three hours before she realized it. She felt listless instead of energized by the freedom she’d gained. There were things to do, items to pack up in her small trunk to take back to her family home. She needed to inform her mother, help her brother understand why he was losing his apprenticeship. But none of it motivated her to move. The thought of putting actual physical distance between herself and Inuyasha was causing a pit to open in her stomach. Her head in her hands, Kagome felt the tears come.

“I’m just in his way. He never wanted me,” she stressed to herself, trying to remember why she was doing this.

"Of course I want you, you stupid woman!” Kagome nearly knocked her chair over backward, she stood so quickly. Inuyasha stood in her room as though he had always been there. He strode to her side, looming over her with his height and the strength of his presence.

“My lord!”

“Stop. Fucking. Calling me that,” he bit out. “I am your husband.” Kagome’s jaw hung open slightly in awe of his fury. For just a moment. Then she recalled why she was doing all of this. This was for his happiness. His future with the one he loved. She had no right to keep him and she had to make him see that.

“But you don’t have to be anymore. This is for the best, right?” Her resolve felt weak when faced with his intense scowl, but she needed him to understand.

“Don’t go deciding this all on your own.”

“I decided this for you because you’re too honorable to decide it for yourself,” she snapped, the strength of her emotions stealing her shell of protective calm. Inuyasha blinked at her in surprise. “You deserve to be happy. You deserve to be with the woman you love. Not some woman you barely know.” She turned away in shame and frustration, not wanting him to see the pain of letting him go on her face.

He took a breath and was shocked by how strongly her pain affected him. She was trying to hide it, to pretend she was alright when she was on the verge of tears. “Your scent makes me insane,” he murmured, more to himself than to her. He stepped closer, hand reaching for her but not quite daring to touch. She turned to meet his gaze, his name leaving her lips in a question. “Your voice soothes the beast inside me. My youkai knows what it wants.” He paused at her puzzled look. “But you don't want a life with a half-breed mutt."

Kagome balked openly at him. "You think  _ that's _ why I want to annul the marriage?!" His petulant look was answer enough. "What about your lovely, refined Kikyo? I thought you were going to marry her before I fell into your life and messed everything up." She saw his hesitation. He couldn't deny that had been his intention before he knew she existed. Kagome couldn't help the pang in her heart. Knowing it and confronting it were very different things. She had no room to complain, she knew that.  _ Doesn’t make it hurt less. _

His broad hands were suddenly on her cheeks with his fingers digging into her hair, dragging her into the curve of his body, surrounding her. "You came and stirred up every single instinct I had buried because Kikyo would never accept them. You bring out the worst and the absolute best in me, Kagome."

“You don’t want me,” she murmured, her resolve cracking. “You never did. You had to get drunk just to think about being near me.”

He scoffed, but blushed faintly. “Had to work up the nerve.” Kagome blinked at him. “I scared you, though.”

“Inuyasha,” she murmured, shaking her head. “It’s not that I was scared. I knew you didn’t really want…” His lips were on hers then, taking more than she felt she had to give and then giving her everything he was. His tongue was hot and fierce as it opened her to him. She melted into him as he took what he needed from her. He made sure she felt every movement of his lips, every lash of his tongue, every nip from his teeth. Even fiercer than his tongue was the growl rising in his chest.

“Fuck,” he breathed, before taking her mouth again and lifting her into his arms. “Stop doubting that I want you.” She was helpless to him in a way she had never felt before. “Kagome, you have to decide if you want to stay, because if I take this any further, there will be no annulment. You will be my wife in all the ways that count.” His amber eyes were bordering on copper.

“Is that really what  _ you _ want?” she shot back. “An unrefined woman who argues with you?”

"If you can tolerate me for a few hundred years," he growled, smirking at her. Kagome let out a sob of relief. "Can you put up with a grumpy, bad mannered hanyou?"

"It's part of why I fell in love with you," she whispered, almost too soft for him to hear. He inhaled sharply, golden eyes wide in surprise.

“Kagome," he breathed against her cheek, "where was I the other night?” His fingers were not entirely careful as he pulled her out of her clothes, but Kagome couldn’t find it in herself to care. Her hands were not idle either, pulling at his kosode in order to reach the planes of his chest and shoulders. His mouth was all over her neck, but kept returning to her lips. "Kagome, I don't want to hurt you. I wanna be gentle…"

"I'm alright," she assured him, even as a nervous thrill went down her spine. His mouth trailed down her midline as he opened her clothes, leaving tiny love bites and the heat of his breath as he went. "Inuyasha," she gasped when his tongue dipped into her navel. He grinned at her before returning his attention to his goal. Kagome squirmed as he pulled her out of her small clothes and used his broad hands to gently spread her thighs. She moved to stop him, embarrassed by his proximity to such an unclean part of her, but his molten amber gaze froze the protest in her throat. He waited only a moment before leaning in to take a pointed sniff. Kagome flushed in a mixture of heat and anxiety. "That's…"

"You are my mate. I will know every bit of you by scent and taste in time." He kept his eyes on hers as he used his tongue to trace her. Kagome fought the moan that wanted to leave her mouth. She saw his ears swivel toward her in rapt attention. “I will hear every sound you can make.”

“Inuyasha…”

“Hm,” he smirked. “Hearing you say my name like that is the best one so far.” Kagome sucked in a shuddering breath as he nuzzled the junction of her hip followed by a sharp nip. “My official mark will not be here, but this place will always bear my mark,” he whispered to her, licking the spot again just to hear her gasp out his name. Twice more, he asked if she truly wanted to be bound to him and, twice more, she told him she wanted to stay by his side. He took his time to get her used to his touch, the feel of him exploring her, before making a concerted effort to push her over the edge. She was slightly tense, despite his best efforts to ease her into it, and it took longer than he expected to get her to relax enough to finally let go. When she did, it was beautiful.

Inuyasha felt his youki rise, his youkai blood boiling as he bound her to him forever. His teeth left the mark just under her hip bone, his tongue pressing to the wound as his own blood mixed with hers, quickly sealing it. While Kagome was still coming back to herself, he pulled the remainder of his clothing off so he could feel the length of her against him. Her arms wound around his shoulders, her forehead pressing against his collar bone. “Inuyasha, that was…”

“Just the beginning,” he promised in a low whisper in her ear. He took her mouth again, relishing the passion she gave him in return. The inuhanyou had never really kissed anyone before, certainly not like this, and the intimacy of it shocked him. The feel of her moving against him with every part of herself was intoxicating. He wanted more of her and his youkai had every intention of making sure she became utterly and completely his.

He took his time introducing his body to hers, knowing she would have some trouble accommodating him. Kagome sighed softly as her slick heat pulled him deeper, still slow, still careful. “Inuyasha,” she murmured, her attention on the feel of him. He paused, sniffing for any sign of pain in her scent. “Don’t stop.”

Inuyasha suppressed a smirk, leaning down to gently kiss her. Her whole body relaxed, allowing him to continue. “Fuck,” he hissed, pulling his hips back so he could move into her again. Kagome moaned softly with the movement, sending prickling heat up his spine.  **_Yes, purr for us._ ** Inuyasha blinked, fighting back the beast. “Kagome.” Large clawed hands went to her thighs, sliding up to her waist so he could keep her in place as he rolled his hips into her more intentionally. His youkai was mumbling things he wanted to say, wanting to hear her scream, to cry out his name. He couldn’t help delivering one harder thrust into her heat, his beast relishing the squeak she let out.

“F-Faster,” she breathed, her fingers moving restlessly in the sheets. Inuyasha did grin then, leaning down onto one elbow so he could simultaneously drive his hips into hers while taking a nipple into his mouth. Kagome arched into him, inviting more. His tongue lashed one hard peak while his left hand caressed the bow of her back, claws carefully tracing her spine. Kagome whimpered. Her lightly calloused fingers dug into his hair, gripping it as encouragement for him to keep his mouth in place. He chuckled against her skin. A nibble accompanied a hard thrust with his hips while his hand braced her lower back. “Please!”

Taking his cue, Inuyasha finally released his tight hold on the reins of his control. Both hands moved under the perfect halves of her ass, holding her steady for him to pound into her. Kagome’s fingertips dug into his biceps as she arched further off the futon. Her gasps and whimpers fed his youkai exactly what it needed. His mate at his mercy, begging him for more. The prickling heat from before became molten and he growled out his release as Kagome cried out her own, her velvet center gripping him tight. He felt a sensation like a punch in the gut, his youkai grabbing full hold of him for a moment.

Coming to, his mouth tasted vaguely of copper and Kagome was huffing for breath below him. Disoriented, it took him a moment to comprehend that he had marked her at the shoulder, the most common place for an inuyoukai to mark a mate, so that all could see it. It was healing already and Kagome was smiling tiredly at him.  **_Mine_ ** , his youkai snarled.  _ Ours _ , he amended, returning Kagome’s smile.

The following morning, Miroku was a bit stunned to have his study door thrown open by a half-dressed inuhanyou. The annulment paperwork he’d been in the midst of drafting was scooped off of his desk and ripped to shreds right before his eyes. “Inuyasha…”

“Don’t need that shit anymore. There will be  _ no _ annulment.” His smirk was downright cocky and Miroku couldn’t help shaking his head and smiling in amusement.

“Of course, my friend. Many happy years for you and your beloved mate.”

“Keh. Damn right, they will be.”

* * *

“Mama!” Kagome breezed into the small suite that had been afforded her mother upon moving to the keep. It was simple, as her mother preferred, but there were clear touches that characterized it as her own space. A poorly painted pot with a plant Sota had given her years ago for a birthday. Her father’s suikan, faded and worn, draped over a chair to grab if her mother was cold. A tapestry depicting the family legend that the Higurashi line was blessed by a tennyo up on the far wall. 

Kagome always found the tapestry beautiful but a bit odd to look at. The tennyo looked uncannily like her, but had been made more than half a century before her birth. It always made her feel awkward. Her father used to love telling her that she was the tennyo come to bless the family, that the ancestors had gotten it backwards and it hadn’t happened yet. When she was three or four, it was delightful, by the time she was twelve, she felt annoyed. It was a lot of pressure to be thought of as the one who would “save” their family.

"Hello dear. How are you?" Kagome turned, hugging her mother as she entered from the other part of the suite. “You’re glowing today.”

“Am I?” Kagome said with a self-conscious giggle. Her mother ran her fingers through her hair as she had since her daughter was little, humming and smiling softly. “How are you feeling, Mama?” she asked while gently leading her to the chair by the window.

“Better every day. I didn’t realize how…” Kagome bit her lip at the pain that flashed across her mother’s face. It was difficult for Mama to acknowledge how truly low they had sunk in the time since her husband had died. The house had become less and less habitable and the one maid they had previously employed had been more of a courtesy to the family they had known for years. Kagome and Yuka had practically grown up together. Now that she had a baby, Yuka had her own family to worry about. With the house becoming draftier, Mama’s health had declined. Now with a solid roof and walls, as well as consistent warmth even as the days cooled into autumn, she was getting stronger. “So what has you in such a good mood?”

“I… well… Nothing in particular.” Mama gave her daughter a look that told her how much she believed that. Kagome fidgeted a little before finally squeaking out, “We mated. Inuyasha and I.” Her mother smiled softly at how red her daughter became while admitting it. “He was very gentle, Mama.”

“I am glad to hear that. Though I’m not sure why that would surprise you.” Kagome blinked. Mama chuckled. “That boy has been doing nothing but walking on eggshells around you since the moment you met. He’s more afraid of you than you ever were of him.”

“Mama, that’s ridiculous.”

“Hm? Is it now?” Lady Higurashi smiled a secretive smile and redirected the conversation to how Sota was doing as an apprentice to the lord’s tailor. He didn’t seem to be enjoying it much, showing far more interest in the armorer. The tailor had told him he needed to understand the fit of clothing first before he could understand how armor was supposed to be shaped. Impatient as we was, he often ended up doing extra chores.

After her daughter left, the elder Higurashi smiled wistfully. Kagome, even though she didn’t yet realize it herself, had married a very good man. A man who did not think himself worthy of his wife and new mate.

Three weeks after Lady Higurashi arrived in the keep, he had politely knocked at her door and bowed his head to her. “My lady. I am sorry that this one did not visit you sooner.”

“No, my lord, I understand your father has been keeping you very busy.” He met her gaze as she sat and invited him to do the same. “I know that the first few months of being newly married can be a busy time. Especially in your position. My Kagome told me that you often have to attend functions throughout the territory.” He nodded. Mama would not be the mother she was if she did not notice the anxious energy he exuded. “I feel you had something you wanted to talk to me about.”

“Hai,” he murmured. “I wanted to apologize.” She raised a brow. Had he not already apologized? “When I met your daughter, I did not think about her situation and what it would mean for her life. I just… burst in like a bull and…”

Mama put out her hand to stop his self loathing. “My lord Inuyasha. Please. You saved my girl, protected her honor, sheltered her. Now you shelter her family.” She saw him about to protest. “If you had not taken her in, had not married her, we would have lost what very little we had.”

Inuyasha could see the shame brought on by acknowledging it to someone else. The Higurashis were a proud family, but modest in their lifestyle, as much by choice as by necessity. Kagome’s mother was showing a lot of trust in him by telling him the truth of her family’s situation. “Did she have a suitor? She never said…”

She sighed deeply. “After my husband died, we were the family of the house in name only. Everything we gained from our land went to keeping the house and keeping us fed. There was nothing for a pretty kimono or attending social functions.” She saw the relief in his amber eyes despite the sadness that filled them. “Kagome never asked to be introduced in society, so I didn’t push.”

“I see.” He paused, thoughtful and more anxious than before. “She could have married a human man, if things had been different.”

An intelligent woman, she saw straight through his offhand remark. “Perhaps. She could have married a youkai, too.” She watched his head lower, his ears flipping back. “If she truly had not wanted to, Kagome would not have married you, Lord Inuyasha. She isn’t the type to be bullied and she’s smart enough to have found a way around it if she truly didn’t want to stay with you.”

“She… doesn’t seem to trust me very much.”

“You hardly know one another at this point. Getting to know her better, and showing her she can rely on you no matter what, will do much to change that.”

Inuyasha left after promising to take her words to heart. She could see in him the desire to do right by her daughter, but the tentative nature of his affection meant that he didn’t know how to show Kagome who he really was. She watched him interact with her daughter in other small gatherings. He was stiff, but more from nerves than because he did not want Kagome by his side. His heritage was a sticking point for him, one he thought might be a problem for Kagome too. Mama didn’t feel it was her place to get in the middle of her daughter’s marriage and hoped that her son-in-law would work up the guts to finally talk to her about what worried him. She didn’t quite realize how stubborn the pair could be.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inuyasha finds that he is nowhere near close enough to his wife and he doesn't like it. He decides he needs to do something about it. Sango finally arrives in the keep. Kagome receives a visitor she wishes she hadn't.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: Spicy beginning, spicier middle.

The scent of his wife was pulling at him from across the keep. Typically, it would only affect him in close proximity and, _usually_ , he was able to acknowledge the draw it had on his attention and then continue on with his work. This was different. It was consuming his thoughts, making it impossible to focus on anything.

"Inuyasha, are you listening?"

"I… uh…" He stared at his mother, the frown dragging down her eyebrows heralding the scolding he was about to get.

"Leave the boy be, Izayoi. His mind is elsewhere." She tossed her mate an irritated look. "Go," he told their son. Not waiting for further permission, the inuhanyou was out the door in a breath. Toga waited a moment, head cocked as he listened to their son bolting across the keep in search of his wife. “I can smell her from here too. It must be almost overpowering to him.” Izayoi’s frown deepened for a moment before understanding lit her gaze and she smiled a little, shaking her head and returning to the embroidery she was working on prior to her attempted conversation with her son.

“You and your noses. Can’t keep them out of anything sweet,” she teased. She anticipated the playful growl and set down her needle before her husband nearly bowled her over to nuzzle her neck and nip at her. “See?”

On the opposite side of the keep, Kagome was similarly caught by her mate, gasping as he whisked her into her room without explanation and had her out of her clothing before she was even fully aware of what was going on. “Inuyasha?!”

“Hm?” he hummed from where he was kissing across her collarbones, dragging her mark with his tongue and rolling his hips into hers with clear intent.

"What…"

"Could smell you from across the courtyard," he mumbled into the valley between her breasts.

"Excuse me?!" she squeaked in horror. Her embarrassment subsided in lieu of pleasure when he found the pebbled tip of her breast with his tongue. A groan followed a gasp of his name. “Inuyasha, what’s gotten… ah… into you?”

He didn’t respond verbally, growling against her stomach, nipping and kissing anywhere he could reach. He pulled back only long enough to remove his own clothing before returning to her. His fingertips played carefully over her body, making sure she was plenty ready before slipping into her with one sure movement. He was relentless until she whimpered that she couldn’t handle any more. After three times, she couldn’t take another explosion of her senses. “Mm,” he purred, stretching out beside her and tucking her into his side.

Relishing the warmth and intimacy of the moment, Kagome sighed softly. They had never joined in the middle of the day like that before. Typically it was him sneaking into her room after dark with the atmosphere of a clandestine affair. _The kind people assumed we were having before._ But this was the first time he had approached her in full sunlight. “You came all the way here because you smelled something?” she teased, running her fingertip across his chest.

“You. Your scent is sweet and warm and…” he broke off into a growl and nuzzled her neck, mouthing and laving it with his tongue. She could feel that he wanted to pounce her again. “Kagome,” he whined when she gently pushed him back. She murmured that she was tired and sore. “I’m sorry,” he mumbled, a flush to his cheeks. “I guess that was a bit much.” Kagome shrugged, stretching with a slight wince. _Did I hurt her?_ She let out a content sigh and curled back into his side. It was the most comfortable he had seen her yet and he smiled, nuzzling into her hair. 

He relished feeling her sleeping against him for a short while, the length of her body along his warming him from the inside out. Inuyasha scowled a moment at the realization that he would have to leave her at some point because this wasn’t his room and he needed another set of clothes. His lovely wife had repeatedly dodged his hints that she could share his chambers since they were now married and mated. She would flush and avoid his eyes or clear her throat and change the subject. He was more confused than annoyed at the moment, but that was likely to change if she continued to evade him.

His mother had actually been in the middle of trying to ask him about exactly that when Kagome’s scent had so thoroughly caught his attention. He could tell she was concerned that her son’s wife did not seem to want to be in his company unless it was required of her. His mother had expressed how relieved she was that Kagome did not seem to hold any sort of prejudice against youkai or hanyou as Inuyasha had initially feared. He guessed that she couldn’t understand why Kagome didn’t adore him to the same extent that Izayoi loved her mate. Inuyasha could only guess that Kagome hadn’t had time to truly fall in love with him yet. Despite having heard the words from her lips, he still had doubts. He guessed Kagome probably did too. He couldn’t blame her, really.

Kagome had been scooped up like a lost pup, taken from her family without anyone asking for her opinion. She had been told she would marry him, not asked. While this was, unfortunately, very common for humans, Inuyasha was aware that for most youkai cultures, a female was the one who agreed to mating after being courted. He’d done none of that…

**_Court your wife, baka._ ** He blinked at the growled command from deep within. The idea made so much sense, he felt a fool for never having thought of it before. If she needed convincing, then he’d convince her! Inuyasha would show Kagome that being married to him, being his mate, was not a bad thing. He just needed to figure out how to do that.

Miroku’s frankly lewd advice was not helpful. Inuyasha felt he was actually doing fairly well in that aspect of their marriage. His mother had told him a bunch of things that made him cringe. They were romantic, sure, but Kagome would know they weren’t his ideas. His father was not much better, mostly skirting the line between the lecherous monk and his mother’s sappy advice. He didn’t need help luring his wife into bed! He needed advice for showing her he wanted her by his side.

Frustrated, he’d taken to the keep’s practice field, swinging Tetsusaiga around with no real aim. The targets in the practice area couldn’t tolerate the full weight of his fang’s power, so he eventually calmed and practiced his swings like when he was a boy.

“Wow. You still do that?”

Inuyasha’s head swung around to find Kagome’s little brother watching him from the edge of the field. “It’s always good to practice. I was mostly blowing off steam, though.” He sheathed his sword and fully turned to face his brother-in-law. The kid was barely fourteen, just old enough to start an official apprenticeship. He was wiry and lean, another testament to how the Higurashi family had been living before Inuyasha found out the truth and brought them to the keep to live. Sota was filling in a little, especially in the face, but Inuyasha could see the boy was going to need a lot more fattening up and exercise to get the strength in his limbs. He would need to start bulking up for the kind of work he actually wanted to do.

“You know, my sister used to do that. When she was frustrated, she’d go out behind the house and shoot arrows until her fingers were numb.” It was a moment after he spoke before Sota realized that this was perhaps something he shouldn’t have revealed about his sister. His dark eyes went wide and he stepped back, biting his lip. “I mean, not that it happened often or anything. She’s, you know, very calm.” Inuyasha raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms over his chest and shifting his weight to one side. “Lord Inuyasha, she really is very sweet.”

“Kid, you don’t need to hide who your sister is. I’m well aware of her temper.” T _hough I would like to see more of it_ , he thought. “If she has a good way to blow off steam, that’s…” _Wait_. Golden eyes widened with an epiphany. “That’s it!” Sota seemed more than a little startled and looked about ready to panic. “You’re a genius!” Inuyasha blew by him, leaving Sota baffled.

The young inuhanyou lord went immediately to the village nearby, knowing the bowyer there had a good reputation. He surveyed several of the options before asking the artisan for his opinion. He initially balked at the idea of a woman using one of his finely crafted bows, but snapped to attention at the growl that rose in Inuyasha’s chest. “My lady wife would be the one using the bow, sir,” the honorific dripping off his tongue like his brother’s acid. “I only asked for your suggestion as I am not as familiar with bows as I am with swords.”

“Y-Yes, of course, my lord. You are right to ask about the length and weight.” At first, he tried to talk him into something Inuyasha knew would be far too delicate for Kagome’s level of skill. Even he knew that she used a stronger and longer lined weapon and was fully capable of creating the appropriate tension in the string for firing arrows at quite a distance. The nearly bare spot in the grass behind her family home was far removed from the extremely beat up target with a similar bare spot below it, indicating it hadn’t been moved for a long time. She was even more capable than the rumors he’d heard. The bowyer eventually got the idea that he was not dealing with an amateur and that his business may or may not depend on how well he handled this transaction.

Inuyasha walked out with what he hoped would be a perfect gift for his wife. He had Shippo gather a couple men to put together an archery target and paced off the approximate length he had seen at the Higurashi home. While they did that, Inuyasha went to find his wife.

Kagome was sitting at the window in her room, attempting embroidery. He could tell by the scent of her frustration in the air that it wasn’t going as well as she’d hoped. Inuyasha shook his head with a smile and swept her up into a kiss after setting aside her needlework. “What’s that for?” she asked him, a quizzical look on her face.

“I have a surprise for you.” He covered her eyes with a nearby handkerchief. She protested mildly, but she was laughing. “I’ll take you,” he chuckled. In the practice field, he set her on her feet before waving one of the men over with his gift. He placed it carefully in her hands and waited.

The look on her partially covered face was confused at first before it slowly filled with recognition and awe. Inuyasha watched her fingers glide over the polished wood, the slightly faded calluses on her fingers catching on the edge of the hand grip. Her fingers rubbed the rattan that bound the grip and her face opened into the most beautiful smile he’d ever seen. “Inuyasha!” she giggled breathlessly, yanking the kerchief from her face and looking the bow over more thoroughly. He delighted in watching her eyes take in the details of the wood, the curves of the design. It was well made, he would give the bowyer that, and his wife was evidently pleased.

Shippo, a bit hesitant, stepped up with the quiver of arrows. “My lord…”

“Ah. Good. Kagome,” he called, catching her attention and cocking his head in the direction of the kitsune standing at his shoulder. She let out a squeal that had both youkai wincing and came to take it from the redheaded fox. Shippo tossed Inuyasha a worried glance, one that was quelled by the inuhanyou’s fierce look of pride. Kagome took a moment to roll up her sleeves, then get a feel for the weight and length of the bow before easily nocking the arrow, measuring her breathing as she pulled the bowstring back and loosed the arrow into the target.

“The fletching on the arrow is too heavy,” she noted, expertly eyeing where she’d hit. Her small hand popped out to the side, palm open expectantly. Inuyasha smirked, waiting for Shippo to pick his chin up off the ground and hand her another arrow. This time, she twirled the arrow around several times, weighing it on her fingers before repeating her well-practiced form and landing this arrow dead center. “I can make my own next time, but these will do.” She eyed the target another moment before whirling on Inuyasha. “Thank you, thank you!” she effused, gripping Inuyasha’s hand and smiling broadly at him. She knew better than to hug him in front of everyone, but he knew her well enough to know she was tempted. And that was exactly the reaction he had been hoping for all along.

Art by @Thunderpot

~~~~~~~~

She had been to the keep before, but it had been when she was a child. Her father had been called to meet with the Inu no Taisho to discuss the treaty between the Tajiya village and the inuyoukai lord and he’d felt like it was a good time to introduce her to larger village life. Sango felt the keep somehow looked bigger, even though she herself was at least twice the size she’d been then. Instead of slightly foreboding, it seemed welcoming this time. There were youkai and humans alike, bustling in and out of the main gate with wares and foodstuffs. She heard a group of children playing near the guard station while one of the older guards called at them to go somewhere else.

“Milady.” A young kitsune tipped his head to her. “You have your documents, I assume.” It took Sango a moment to realize he meant her marriage certificate and travel papers that would allow her into the inner part of the keep. She flushed then, the knowledge dawning on her that he could likely smell Miroku all over her. “No need to be embarrassed ma’am. It’s a joyous time, being newly married. Or… so I’ve heard.”

“Oh?” she finally squeaked out as she handed over the scrolls Miroku had painstakingly printed himself and checked several times before rolling them for her to make sure she wouldn’t lose them. He hated that he had to return to the keep without her, unable to suspend his duties long enough to come back for her when Kohaku had fully taken leadership as had originally been the plan. She reminded him that they had been apart for years and that a few weeks wouldn’t kill them. The way he made love to her the night before he left told her he felt it might.

“Well, it wasn’t for his lordship’s son, at first,” he murmured to her conspiratorially as he read over her documents. “Ahem. But they seem to be getting along just fine these days!” His grin was a bit infectious and Sango couldn’t help the tiniest curl of her lips. He handed the scrolls back to her and nodded. “I’m Shippo, by the way, if you need anything…”

“Thank you, Shippo.” His smile became even broader. He directed her to the correct entrance, a call to one of the older boys playing nearby to escort her. The boy was tall enough to be in his teens, but he was a bit lean. Sango couldn’t help comparing him to her own brother. “Hello.”

He nodded a greeting. “Are you the monk’s wife?” he asked as they walked toward a smaller door that likely led into a side entrance, rather than the grand main hall. She replied that she was. “That’s good. My sister will be glad of the company!” Sango smiled a little awkwardly at the boy’s statement. “Sorry! I’m Higurashi Souta, Kagome is my sister.”

“Oh! The young lord’s new wife!” Sango felt a burst of relief. She didn’t really think that her husband could have another woman he was hiding from her, but there had been a momentary panic. “It’s nice to meet you. I hope to meet her…”

“Souta! Weren’t you supposed to be at the blacksmith’s this afternoon?”

Sango was startled by the voice interrupting her opportunity to find out more about her new home and the people in it. She turned to find a dark-haired young woman with a slightly stern look on her face. It did not appear to be a face she wore often. “Shippo-san asked me to show Miroku-sama’s wife…”

“Oh my goodness! You’re Miroku-sama’s wife? I’m so sorry! Welcome! He’s been anxiously awaiting your arrival.”

It took a moment for her head to stop spinning from the rapid change in attitude. Nothing struck her as fake, but it was a bit overwhelming. “Yes, Sango. Thank you.”

“My manners are terrible. Excuse me. I’m Kagome, Lord Inuyasha’s wife.” The two women bowed to one another. The tajiya made a point to assess this woman whom she would likely be spending quite a bit of time with. “They’re in a meeting, but it’s just the two of them. I’m sure they won’t mind!” She bustled the newly arrived Sango into the keep and waved off her brother, scolding him about getting back to work.

“Yea, Yea,” he responded. “Nice to meet you Miss Sango!”

It took her a moment for her eyes to adjust to the darker hallways of the inner keep, the occasional opening to let in light and fresh air not making up for the sun being on the opposite side of the roof. A man with scales framing his cheeks, down his neck and the tops of his arms and hands, was methodically lighting lamps on the wall sconces to add light and a little warmth to the corridor. _Hanyou?_ Sango mused, but continued to follow Kagome without staring. “Hello Ryusei-kun, how are you?”

“Oh! I’m well, Lady Kagome. Thank you for asking. Y-You are well?” he stammered, a light flush rising on his cheeks. Sango could now see the slight flattening of his nasal bone, the slitted irises and nares. _Dragon?_ She wondered with a bit of amazement. He glanced at her in question, then bowed. “Milady.”

“This is Sango-san. She’s Miroku-sama’s wife,” Kagome explained. The slight widening of both eyes and nostrils surprised Sango not at all. She was not oblivious to her husband’s reputation. Ryusei welcomed her and asked Kagome’s leave before getting back to his work. It took a moment for the tajiya to process that he was lighting the lamps from his fingertips. “He’s very sweet,” Kagome murmured as they moved on. “Shy.”

“I noticed. Rare, to see a dragon hanyou.”

“You recognized it?” Kagome beamed. “You’re very sharp, Sango-san. He and his mother were cast from his father’s clan lands. They came here until his father can come to get them.” There was a tight tone to Kagome’s voice that told Sango much. It was probably a story, one they continued to uphold for the sake of the young man. No one really thought the dragon would be coming for his family. He either could not leave, or more likely, had been killed by his clan for daring to procreate with a human. “They received a letter a few weeks ago…”

The slayer found herself a little shocked. “Really? I would have thought…”

“Well. Until they actually see him, I don’t know that they trust it really came from him.” Sango nodded solemnly. “Karen-san is expected to deliver any day. I know she fears he will not make it in time.” So that was where the tension came from. The anxiety that this, by most standards, very strange dragon would not make it to be present for the birth of their second child. That there was a first… let alone a second!

Sango was so lost in her thoughts about this amazing place where youkai and humans blended so easily that she almost crashed into her guide when she stopped.

“This is it.” Kagome knocked once before opening the shoji and letting them both in.

“Kago…”

“Sango, my love!” Miroku’s exuberant call interrupted his lord and he jogged across the room to take his wife’s hands and squeeze them. “You made it safely!”

“Keh. Course she did, Bouzu. She’s stronger and smarter than you are.” The monk tossed his lord and friend a scathing look, but was all shining joy for his wife. “Welcome, Slayer,” Inuyasha grinned, unthinkingly tucking his own wife into his side when she came up to greet him. Sango was a bit stunned to see the typically surly inuhanyou demonstrate such open affection for his wife. Kagome was clearly a little surprised too, pink on her cheeks and faint confusion in her eyes. Perhaps she was not used to this Inuyasha either.

Sango couldn’t analyze their relationship right now, having her hands full with her own husband who was clearly struggling not to embarrass them both with some overt display of affection. “Thank you, Lord Inuyasha. I am thankful for your family extending your home to us as well.” He nodded, then waved at Miroku’s eager look, dismissing him so he could show his wife her new accommodations. He moved her out of the study and immediately led her through the main corridor and down a side hall. _Ryusei must have been through here already_ , she thought idly as Miroku nearly dragged her along the lit stone walls.

He didn’t even give her a chance to look around once he had her inside what, she had to assume, were their chambers. His mouth was on hers without warning, his arms tight bands around her middle. Sango melted into him as he kissed her desperately, her traveling pack dropping with a thud. “I have missed you,” he groaned against her when they broke for air. Then he was on her again, kissing her breathless and curling her into his slightly taller frame as if to make her a part of him. “You have been well?” he asked her, moving across her chin and down her neck while loosening the ties of her travel kimono.

“Are you trying to make conversation at a time like this?” she asked with a grin, looping her arms around his shoulders to keep him close. Despite her teasing, she had missed him too and she wanted to feel his solid strength against her.

“I didn’t think you’d want to be ravished the moment you walked in,” he chuckled.

Sango huffed a laugh, then worked his robes loose enough to fall to his elbows. Her lips traveled the length of his neck, his shoulder. “I think it’s you who wanted to be ravished,” she returned. She didn’t miss the shudder of desire that ran through him. A smirk curled her lips and she used her not insignificant strength to direct her husband toward the futon on the opposite wall from the shoji. Using his robes’ position to her advantage, Sango tucked and tied his arms behind him, making sure he was comfortable before surveying her work.

His chest was slightly pink from his excitement, matching his cheeks and the brightness of his eyes. Sango slipped her kimono off, letting it slide off of her and onto the floor. Miroku’s gaze followed it down before bouncing back to her bare skin. Her breast bindings fell after a few movements of her deft fingers. The way his already wide pupils dilated in response made her grin. Discovering that her husband’s weakness was being at her mercy was a pleasant surprise. He liked when she made him wait, made him beg.

Even more, he liked when she told him what to do to her.

“You missed me?” she purred, finger tracing his chin. Miroku nodded. She trailed her finger down his throat, the bone that divided his chest, and to his navel. The muscles there rippled in anticipation of her touch continuing. Instead she used both forefingers to part the remainder of his robes, barely brushing where he wanted her to touch the most. “I think you should show me how much,” she murmured in his ear, leaning over enough to put her breasts well within his range. He wasted no time, tongue slipping out to taste her. Sango sighed, one hand sliding onto his head and lacing her fingers in his hair, encouraging him.

“I have missed you very much,” he murmured against her skin. He nudged her with his nose, indicating that he wanted to reach more of her. She helped him move further back on the futon, then stood over him, encouraging him on. He grinned up at her, violet eyes glowing, before he leaned in for a more intimate taste. Sango’s head fell back as the jolts of pleasure started to ripple through her. “I have been looking forward to this moment since the day I left,” he purred, following it up by sucking hard on the spot that got her going best.

“Miroku,” she groaned, sinking down and finally parting his robes enough to bare him to her gaze. She had him free of his fundoshi with practiced ease and settled over him with a shared hiss of breath. She accepted him into her body, sighing at the feeling that swamped her at finally being connected with her husband after nearly a month apart. Miroku’s head fell back as he groaned, his frame shivering beneath her. With a whispered word of permission, he began rolling his hips up into her as best he could in his position, needing to lean back onto his elbows to get better leverage. Sango gasped at the change of pace, the increased friction.

“My love,” he pleaded, his tone very telling. He was close. That knowledge added fuel to the flame inside her and Sango crooned his name as she leaned forward to capture his mouth in a hard kiss. They whimpered almost in unison, her arms cradling him against her as he trembled, her muscles quaking with the strain of repeat aftershocks. When she could sense herself in space again, the slayer slowly released her husband’s arms from their not-actually-restraining ties. He fell back on the futon, tugging her down onto his chest to curl up together.

They lay for some time, simply breathing and softly touching, fingers tracing the curves and planes available to them. “I missed you, Miroku.”

He grinned into her hair. “I am very glad that you are finally here.” She smiled, humming a little as she adjusted to get more comfortable. “Knowing you are safe and here where I can touch and see you all the time is…” He let out a heavy breath. “I feel a great weight has lifted off of my chest.”

Sango bit her lip and nuzzled into his chest. She had yet to let the weight lift from her own chest, but after a few days, she would release it. Better to get a little more accustomed to her new home before fully allowing herself to relax and tell her worrywort husband about her travels to the keep.

* * *

Kagome had never had a visitor before and she was completely confused as to why her husband’s former lover was the first. She stood stiffly in the small sitting room, waiting for the other woman to enter before they knelt across from one another. “Welcome, Lady Kikyo. Thank you for taking the time to visit,” she stated as calmly as she could. Kikyo was ever the picture of elegance and poise while Kagome felt like she might retch from the nerves alone. She kind of wished Sango was here, just to make her feel less like this was a meeting for a war treaty. She had a feeling Kikyo would not appreciate the unknown face being present.

Kikyo gave a slight bow before looking her hostess over. “I felt it was due time for me to come pay my respects.”

“I-I see.” As the two made small talk about the weather and pleasantries about the keep, Kagome felt her temperature rise. She was nervous. Wanting anything but to visibly sweat in front of this woman, she allowed her shawl to slide to her elbows in hopes of releasing some of the heat trapped against her skin. She was startled by her visitor’s muffled scoff.

“Oh. So he finally placed his mark, did he?” Kagome was unprepared for the condescending smile that came with the unexpected statement. “What an… impersonal gesture.” There had to be something she wasn’t understanding. Inuyasha had said that the mark on her shoulder was for anyone to see, so it had to be visible and in the open. It was as much to protect her as to demonstrate their relationship. “It is a shame, for you. I thought perhaps his heart had been swayed.”

“Pardon?” Kagome murmured, stunned by Kikyo’s audacity to make comment on her private relationship with her husband. “I don’t understand what you mean.”

Kikyo never changed her facial expression, maintaining the slightly pitying look. “An inuyoukai marks his possessions in that manner. His true mate would bear a love mark. One that isn’t so visible.” She lifted her sleeve to reveal a small scar just below the crease of her elbow. “I thought he might be lost to me completely. I am glad to see I was wrong.”

Kagome felt that uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach shift violently, but she held back any visible reaction. This woman brought out the worst, bitterest, feelings in her. Kagome hated feeling like this. “We are married, Lady Kikyo, and he has marked me as his mate. I… I cannot speak to his feelings, but in all the ways it matters, we are bound,” she explained shakily, none of her usual temper in her tone. Kagome could feel how pale her face had become. She couldn’t risk offending this person, no matter how much she wanted to have her thrown out, to show that she had “won.” Inuyasha was hers, not Kikyo’s. Right? Wasn’t he? “I will beg your leave, then, as I am feeling tired.” The triumphant look did not leave the other woman’s face, but there was nothing Kagome could do and she did not have the strength even if she could think of something.

“Farewell then. I hope you get enough rest.” She left, her slippers barely whispering against the floors. Kagome remained in stunned silence, breathing carefully to calm her racing heart, her fluttering stomach. _Not lost to her. He isn’t, is he?_ But he wouldn’t go behind her back, right? His father, his brother, some of the courtiers… They would know! They would be able to smell it. But would they tell her? Would they do anything to stop him? She had heard rumors of men, lords especially, who had lovers outside their marriages. Some had an entire family with women other than their wives.

“Inuyasha isn’t like that,” she tried to remind herself. Her determination wasn’t enough to dismiss the tight feeling in her chest entirely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here... have some angst. KAYLOVEYOUBYE! *runs for the hills.*


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inuyasha wants to know what is going on with his wife. He decides to stop walking on eggshells and confronts her in the garden. They both learn something about each other.

Inuyasha stared at his wife from the keep wall, watching her roam the garden alone. She had been avoiding him for well over a week. The inuhanyou was perplexed. In the nearly six weeks since they had mated, finally consummating their marriage as they should have done months before that, she had remained shy and reserved, but welcoming. She never turned him away from her bed, but she maintained that she not move into his chambers with him and, during the day, he was hard pressed to find her alone. This was a perfect opportunity to find out why his wife and mate couldn’t seem to look him in the eye.

He slunk down from the wall as silently as he could, not wanting her to bolt. He waited until she was more or less cornered by the maple which was beginning to lose its leaves. She often commented on the color, rusty red aside from winter when it was completely bare. He took hold of her elbow and turned her to face him, slightly stunned by the fear that flickered across her face. “My lord!”

“Kagome…” he growled. She knew he hated when she called him by his title.

“Inuyasha. You surprised me. Is something the matter?” she asked, looking around his tall frame in concern. Or possibly hoping for an escape route. He was betting on the latter.

Inuyasha tried to catch her gaze, but she stared stubbornly at the sword at his hip. “You haven’t spoken to me in days. What the hell did I do?”

“Nothing, you did nothing,” she insisted, her eyes still averted. The temptation to shake her was strong, but he knew that wouldn’t help anything. The scent of tears singed his nose and he did take hold of her then, forcing her eyes to his. “I’m alright. I am.”

“Keh. You look anything but alright, and you have been acting like I have the plague.” He took her lips for just a moment, softly, carefully, needing to feel and taste her and trying whatever he could think of to get her to speak to him. He was shocked to taste even more of her tears, to feel her sobbing. “Kagome,” he breathed in question.

“Don’t. _Please_ don’t. You’ll give me the wrong idea if you kiss me like that,” she whimpered. _Wrong idea? What the hell is she talking about?_ Inuyasha held onto his sobbing mate to keep her from running from him. “I will never refuse you, I swear. But don’t treat me like this.”

“Am I hurting you?” he demanded in a panicked voice. Kagome hiccuped a sob, shaking her head. If anything, she wanted more. But that was the problem, wasn’t it? She wanted so much more than she could ever hope for, and it pained her to have him make these small overtures which could be misconstrued as affection. As love. “Damn it, woman, what am I doing wrong?”

“You don't have to pretend that you care about me. Kikyo showed me her mark.”

Inuyasha was confused, but he was beginning to suspect what was troubling her. “What mark?”

“Your… your love mark. For your true mate.”

He shook his head as if to clear her words from his ears. “I never marked her.”

“What?”

“I. Never. Marked. Kikyo.” Inuyasha swept her into his arms when she became weak in the knees. “Is that what all this nonsense has been about?” She didn’t answer, but her lowered eyes were enough. “Why didn’t you just ask me?”

“I didn’t want to hear how you would always… How you would never...” Her face turned into his shoulder as he walked through the corridors toward his room. He wasn’t going to allow her to put distance between them anymore.

“You are my mate. My _only_ mate.”

“She showed it to me!”

Inuyasha closed his eyes and tried to think of what she could possibly have seen. “Are you talking about that scar on her arm?” he asked, pointing to his elbow. Kagome instantly collapsed in on herself. “I gave her that, but not on purpose and not as a mating mark. We got caught in a rainstorm, she slipped, and I caught her arm. My claw cut her but it was barely anything.”

“So she’s not… Oh. I-I just…”

He firmly took hold of both of her shoulders to make sure she was paying attention. “Kagome. I have only ever had one mate and she’s right in front of me. Only you bear my marks.”

“Marks? I thought there was only this one,” she said in confusion, brushing the one at her shoulder with her fingertips. Inuyasha growled as he moved to pull the lower part of her kimono up and out of the way. She squeaked in indignation and tried to push his hands away, but he was not to be deterred. “Inuyasha!”

“Here. Your first mark is here!” He pressed his palm to the inset of her hip where he had first exchanged blood with her. “The first time we were together I marked you here. It is not to be shown or spoken of to anyone else.” Kagome gasped when he removed his hand only to place his lips there. “You feel me through your whole body here, don’t you?” he whispered against her skin. Kagome felt all her nerves tremble at his tongue sweeping it. She knew that spot had always been sensitive, she just hadn’t realized that was why. “You are my mate, Kagome, no one else.”

“But you love her, don’t you?” Her voice barely reached his ears, but the scent of her fear and sadness hit his nose like diving under muddy water. “I am an obligation to you. Your youkai side might lust after me, but you don’t love me.” She was sad but matter of fact, resigned. Inuyasha shook his head, ready to refute her. “I’ve always known. I just… I thought maybe you had grown to care for me. At least a little.”

“Why do you do this?” he hissed, tugging on her hips until she was fully under him. His larger frame looming over her, he caged her in until she had nowhere to go or look but him. “You continue to doubt me, making assumptions about me without bothering to ask.”

"I'm not blaming you. I understand."

"You wouldn't be insisting that I love another woman if you truly understood!" His snarl made her wince away from him. "I would never have marked you as my mate if I didn't care. We are bound together for _life_ , Kagome! I wouldn't enter into that if you were just an obligation."

"It's not just to show possession?" she squeaked out uncertainly. He glared in response. "Well how was I supposed to know? No one explained anything!"

Inuyasha opened his mouth as if to argue, then snapped it shut when he realized she was completely right. Even after his father _told_ him he needed to explain, he'd been the one assuming things. "I… I thought you knew.”

“Just rumors and what… what Kikyo said.” The fact that speaking the other woman’s name caused her such anxiety made him angry. He clearly had not shown her that she was his choice, his one and only. He could have let her leave when she tried to annul their marriage. He could have accepted it and done what she thought he wanted: marry Kikyo. Instead he’d followed his instincts, his heart, and he found his wife and mate to be more accepting of his youkai nature than he could ever have hoped. To some degree, she even preferred his youkai traits over those that made him more human. His ears for example. _And my fangs,_ he thought with a smirk as he nipped her shoulder near her public mark. “Ah. Inuyasha,” she gasped, her thighs coming up around his hips.

“The mate of an inuyoukai is with him for the extent of his lifespan. She is his wife, his partner, the mother of his pups and his confidant. She is his strength.” He punctuated his statements with licks, nips, or nibbles on her skin, finally taking her right nipple into his mouth for a brief moment. Kagome arched into him to increase the sensation. “Not just anyone can be the mate of a youkai, Kagome. You have been hiding the fiery nature I know is in there for fear that you would be punished.”

“Not punished,” she whimpered, her fingers laced through his hair keeping his mouth focused on her left nipple this time. “I thought you would hate me.” Inuyasha froze, pulling his head back enough so he could meet her eyes, wincing at the tears he found there. “Especially after seeing you with her that time. You were so gentle with her and she was so delicate, so demure.” He frowned. “You didn’t sound like yourself. Not like the you _I_ knew, anyway.”

“Exactly,” he sighed, kissing her enthusiastically. “Exactly! I couldn’t be myself with her. She isn’t strong like you, Kagome. She couldn’t handle the real me on her best day. Y-You’ve handled me at my worst, my best, and all while trying to protect your family and…” he trailed off, realizing that she hadn’t just been protecting her family. “And yourself. Fr-from me.” He swallowed thickly. “Kagome I…”

“Inuyasha…”

“No, let me get this out.” He had to swallow a second time, his throat feeling dry. “I was not kind to you. I treated you like you were a burden.” A deep breath helped him steady his nerves. “From the moment I laid eyes on you - no, from the moment your scent hit my nose, even before I saw you! - you have been clouding my senses, causing my instincts to rise up out of nowhere. I didn’t understand why and I lashed out at you instead of trying to understand.” Inuyasha ran his fingers through her hair, cupped her cheek. “But it’s so obvious now that I feel like an idiot. _Of course_ it was because you were meant to be my mate. My youkai knew it from the very first breath. My human side took longer to figure it out and with the other… entanglement, I was confused.”

“It’s alright.”

“It isn’t. But thank you for your forgiveness anyway.” She laughed softly as he nuzzled her chin, licking her in gratitude for giving him the benefit of the doubt. “Thank you, for accepting me, Kagome.”

She let out a tremulous sigh. “Inu… Thank you for saving me.” He felt that it had maybe been the other way around, but didn’t say so in that moment. Instead he followed his instinct to show her his thanks, his affection. He wanted to hear her sigh and cry out his name. His tongue traced her ribs, down over the slight curve of her lower belly and to the source of the scent that was fundamentally Kagome. Inuyasha took a drawn out breath of her scent, grinning for a moment before a frown tilted his brows, followed by his whole head.

He knew every nuance of her scent, or at least he thought he did. Something was different. What made him think that she would even taste different? He pressed closer, deeply sniffing her and taking a tentative lick of her dampened slit. Kagome gasped at the feel of his tongue, completely unaware of his intense scrutiny. As more of her juices flowed from the attention from his mouth, Inuyasha gasped at what his mind had finally been able to piece together. “Kagome? Kagome, you’re…”

She jolted at the tone of his voice. “What? What’s wrong, Inuyasha?”

He took another sniff, another lick just to be sure, then he crawled up her body. “Kagome, Koi, I think you’re whelped.” Kagome’s eyes widened and her hand flew to her belly. “Did you not know?”

“N-no. I… I had been feeling off, but I honestly thought it was from feeling so anxious.” She looked up into his face, studying him for his reaction to the news. “Are you… is this what you wanted?” she whispered. Inuyasha’s eyes closed slowly, his forehead lowering to rest against hers. His hand joined hers to rest protectively over her stomach.

“I never dreamed that this could be… That I could…” He took a deep breath to calm his fluttering heart. “A pup of our own,” he murmured, grinning down at her and kissing her barely a moment later. “Kagome!” he laughed, scooping her into his embrace and rolling until she lay atop him, her loose hair falling around their faces. “I thought I would end up alone. Youkai never wanted me because of my human half and humans only ever wanted me for my father’s position, his power.”

“That’s not…”

“It’s not you. You would have gone off with Koga the moment he told you he was a prince if that was your style. You didn’t even want me at first.” He cringed as he thought back to those first few months when he was sure his unwilling bride hated him and often spent the night near her room in case she tried to run away or do herself harm just to get away from him. “You could have run away.”

“You sacrificed so much.” She watched his ears flip back and his eyes skittered away from hers. “But you were kind when it really mattered. You protected me when no one else would have.”

“So you feel indebted.” The pout on his face made her smile.

“Then I fell in love with you, baka. The way you respect and love your family, how you complimented me without meaning to. You are so honorable and grumpy and sweet.”

“And ruggedly handsome,” he interjected with a smirk and a waggle of his eyebrows. Kagome couldn’t help laughing and leaning down to kiss him on his ridiculously smug mouth.

“Yes. Definitely that too.” It was her turn to smirk at him. “Your mother was right. ‘Too handsome to stay away from’ is what she said about your father, and implied that you looked very much like him.”

Inuyasha’s smirk grew before melting off of his face into a faint look of horror. “My mother didn’t tell you about meeting my father, did she?” Kagome sat back a little, confused by his sudden change in mood. “Oh gods. She didn’t… go into detail, right?”

“She told me about treating his wounds, the fire…”

“But nothing in between?” He seemed almost frantic. Kagome thought back to her interaction with her mother-in-law and tried to come up with any part of that conversation that would cause her husband to panic. Finally she shrugged. “Thank all the gods for that,” he sighed, letting his head fall back to thunk on the floor. “When I was younger, she thought I should know all the important details of my parents’ mating. _All_ of them. So I would know what to do when I found my mate.”

Kagome tried really hard not to laugh. He was obviously distressed by the experience and he had been even more distressed by the thought that his mother had possibly exposed her to the same lecture. Laughter burst out of her and she dropped her forehead against his sternum as she giggled breathlessly. She felt the growl vibrating through him, but his arms tightened around her to keep her close. “I-I’m sorry! It’s just…”

“Yea, yea, laugh it up.” Despite his embarrassment, Inuyasha couldn’t help chuckling a little himself. Her laughter stopped abruptly when the belly laughs apparently became too much for the nausea frequently waiting in the wings. “Koi, you alright?” She nodded, eyes closed as she took slow, deep breaths to settle her stomach. The inuhanyou sighed, laying his wife on his pillow and gently resting his hand on her mostly flat belly. “I know you don’t feel well right now, but I want you to know how happy I am, how proud, that you are carrying my pup.”

“Th-that actually makes me feel better.” He gave her a lopsided grin in response.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And y'all thought it would stay angsty! Psh.  
> It's all good. For now. 😈  
> Slightly short chapter because I wanted to play @heavenin--hell's game on Tumblr and didn't want to COMPLETELY spoil everything.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inuyasha is forced to confront the past to make sure his future with Kagome is safe.

Before he could officially announce that they had a pup on the way, he needed to address the previous conflicts that might try to rise again later. Inuyasha chose to deal with the wolf first. A small delegation of his mate, himself and his brother made the relatively short trip to the edge of ookami territory where Koga and his two lackeys were waiting. The moment the wolf’s nose caught the fact that they were mated and that she was whelped, Koga almost walked away on the spot. His packmates looked at the prince in anxious anticipation of his reaction, relief in their posture when he turned away. Inuyasha crossed his arms over his chest. “You won’t bother her again.”

The wolf prince paused, looking over his shoulder. “No. You have my word.” He gave Kagome a solemn look. She could tell he was trying to determine if she was as alright with this as she appeared outwardly. Kagome stood a little straighter and edged a little closer to Inuyasha. “Unless you die early,” he said with a smirk at the inuhanyou and flipped them a slightly mocking salute. He took off faster than the other two wolves could keep up and they could hear the pair calling after their leader as they struggled to follow.

“Keh.”

“You can’t die. Ever,” Kagome mumbled seriously. Inuyasha snorted a laugh.

“Hn. This one would marry you before letting that wolfling anywhere near you.” Both of them turned slowly to look at Sesshomaru, still staring stoically after the ookami’s entourage. Kagome just looked stunned while Inuyasha’s eyes turned quickly from surprise to rage. 

“Go find your own mate, asshole.” 

Sesshomaru simply raised an eyebrow before turning on his heel and starting back toward the keep. “Calm yourself, whelp. This one has no interest in your mate other than protecting our pack.”

He waited for his brother to be out of earshot before gathering his wife close. “Especially now, I won’t leave you,” Inuyasha breathed in her ear as his hand gently brushed her lower belly. Kagome blushed, tucking her nose into his shoulder for just a moment.

“I know.”

Next was the confrontation they were both dreading, more so Inuyasha than Kagome, though he didn’t want to let her know. He took the morning before the scheduled meeting to run through the forest, leaping trees and mentally rehearsing everything he was going to say. It helped to burn off some excess nervous energy, but it had not really helped him get his thoughts in order. He knew he needed to tell Kikyo that there was no possibility of him changing his mind now. Even if he still held romantic feelings for her - which he no longer did - he was utterly bound to Kagome now. The public and private marks in addition to their official marriage were more than enough to make it clear to any youkai that he was committed to her. The pup only made it more clear who he had chosen.

He paused atop the tallest tree in the forest to reminisce, to consider how drastically his life had changed in the span of just under a year.

~~~~~~~~~~

He'd been fascinated by her. She was beautiful, demure, poised. And she was looking at  _ him… _ After the initial self doubt faded, the assumption that she stared because he was strange looking disappearing, he was drawn to her. It took him almost an hour to work up the nerve to speak to her at that gathering.

"My Lord. You honor me with your greeting," she murmured when he finally worked up the nerve to introduce himself. She dipped low. Inuyasha instantly felt uncomfortable that such a lovely lady was lowering herself to him. The hanyou gently touched her shoulder to bring her attention up, flinching when she startled. "My Lord?"

"Uh. Inuyasha. You haven't given me your name…"

"Kikyo," she replied with a small smile.

They spent most of the party speaking in low tones to one another. Inuyasha mostly listened as she spoke of the poetry she was learning and even shared a few she had written. Her scent reflected her anxiety in sharing something so personal, but he told her how much he liked hearing her speak. He found her voice even more soothing than the words.

Kikyo was called away by her parents at the end, her mother looking anxiously at the stern face of her father. Inuyasha had only had limited interaction with the human noble, but he had a reputation for being conservative and bullheaded. He, not so secretly, felt that the inuyoukai held a bit too much power in this territory. The young lord hadn’t known he had a daughter, let alone two, and he didn’t seem all that pleased to see his elder daughter speaking with an inuhanyou. Of course, he didn’t seem pleased by much of anything. He was a big man with dark severe brows and a thin unsmiling mouth. Kikyo’s mother was almost his direct opposite. Wispy with a fair complexion, as if she didn’t quite get enough fresh air, and very soft spoken. It was like a mouse and bear strolling together as they left.

They had many more chances to meet, during official fetes, after that first time. With the late fall weather, there had been little opportunity to get outside before. Now that spring had arrived, they were able to spend time in the gardens. Kikyo mentioned that her mother liked knowing she had a “friend” her own age. Inuyasha felt odd at being referred to as her friend and had said so. “Well, it is either that or you become a suitor,” she teased him.

“Wh-What if I did?” he retorted, chest puffing out in a ploy to seem confident while he was scrambling inside. How presumptuous she would think he was!

Inuyasha was stunned by the fluttering lashes turned his way. “You would want to court me, Lord Inuyasha?” she asked softly, twisting a length of grass around her finger idly. He froze, then shrugged as nonchalantly as he could while his heart raced. Her dark eyes flashed with some emotion he didn’t entirely recognize but she smiled a moment later. “I think I would like that, if you were asking.”

Air whooshed out of him and he felt like maybe his spine was melting. “You… you would?” She glanced over at the other groups of young people enjoying the garden at Izayoi’s invitation.

“I think that we might be very compatible, Lord Inuyasha, don’t you?” He fought down the itchy feeling it gave him, hearing her call him by his title, even after all this time. “We would make a good pair.”

“Y-Yes.” Kikyo had been pleased by his response but had moved on to discussing the flowers his mother specifically planted herself that year to encourage more butterflies into the garden. He was secretly relieved for the change in subject.

A few weeks later, they had become much more comfortable with one another and had even begun sneaking time alone in the back garden. Kikyo always made it clear that they could do nothing inappropriate, but it was nice to be able to talk without listening ears or gaping eyes. Inuyasha finally got to relax a little, tell someone even a little more about himself than anyone other than his mother knew. Kikyo got the chance to confide how she longed to make decisions for herself. Inuyasha had promised her that he would never force her to do anything she didn’t want.

When it got closer to summer, she expressed concern that he hadn’t spoken to his parents about a betrothal yet. “I will. It has been so busy with the planting season. Then my father and I had to deal with those rogue youkai along the wagon road...”

“Yes, I am aware. Would that not have been a good time to bring it up, given that you were alone together?” He hesitated. It wasn’t that she was wrong, it would have been a good opportunity, but he hadn’t felt like there was a right time to bring it to his father’s attention. And then when there had been a moment he felt he could say something, his tongue had stilled in his mouth. “Now that things have settled down some, I am sure he would gladly listen. This would be good news, would it not?”

Inuyasha relaxed a little. “Yes, of course,” he murmured, gently taking her hand and holding it to his chest. She smiled softly up at him, hope in her eyes. “Yes, I will speak to him this week.” Despite his assurances, he felt somehow worried at the prospect of taking things to an official level with Kikyo. Something in his gut felt off, churning. He gave her a warm smile to cover his feeling and escorted her back to the front of the keep so she could board her carriage and return home.

The next morning he still felt the roiling in his core, avoiding his father when he should have been marching into his office. Instead he dressed lightly for movement and headed out into the territory’s forested lands to run off some energy and hopefully sort out this feeling. He felt calmer with the wind whipping through his hair, making his ears whistle as he soared from treetop to treetop. His heart was racing in an expected way, his stomach bunching only as he landed and prepared to jump again.

**_STOP._ ** His youkai had never been so loud before! Inuyasha skidded to a halt as he tried to catch up to what his youkai instincts were howling at him about. A scent on the breeze spun him to his left, ears, eyes and nose pointedly attentive to the crash of someone running, heedless, through the woods. “What the fu…”  **_THERE._ **

~~~~~~~~~~

Inuyasha paused on the wall of the keep, spotting his wife walking with their mothers in the smaller private garden near the family chambers.  **_There._ ** He smiled softly at the tenderness the three women shared in chatting about the new life growing in his beloved Kagome’s womb. And that was the most important part that he wasn’t sure he could say aloud. He  _ loved _ Kagome. More than any other reason he was bound to her, his obnoxiously persistent youkai included, their love drew him to her side and would keep him there for the rest of his life.

He leapt down from his perch and greeted his wife and their mothers. “Oi, you been gossiping about me?” he chuckled as he tucked his wife into his side.

Izayoi smiled warmly at the pair. “Only about how excited we are to see if your child has your adorable ears.” Inuyasha choked a moment before looking down at his blushing mate. His mother-in-law chuckled at their mutual discomfort. “Your father seems to think that the strength of his blood in you will carry through. We’ll have to wait another…”

“Five months or so. At least, that’s what Tomo-sensei thinks. He also believes that the pregnancy will be shorter, like yours was my lady.”

“Ah. Inuyasha, my dear boy, please explain to your wife that she is welcome to call me by my name! She insists on being so formal with us all.”

Inuyasha leaned down to nuzzle her affectionately. “It takes time, ne?” Kagome smiled shyly in response. “She still calls me by my title sometimes.”

“I don’t mean to offend you, I-Izayoi.”

“Oh, I know that dear. I was merely teasing. Lightening the mood. You two are set to meet with the young lady soon, are you not?” The pair shared a grim look. “Do you wish for us to be present as well? It may deter any… unpleasant reactions.”

“I agree,” Lady Higurashi chimed in. “It would be seen as very rude to shout in front of the lady of the house.”

As tempting as it was to let their mothers intervene if the meeting went sour, Inuyasha knew that this was something he needed to do himself. Having Kagome there was already going to throw doubt on his words, as Kikyo might think he was saying them to appease his legal wife or because he had been forced to. He did not wish to hide anything from Kagome and having her there was the best way to make sure they both heard the exact same words from him.

“Thank you, but no. That might just make it all harder.” Mama nodded her understanding, but looked to Kagome for confirmation. “You might wait for Kagome in the next sitting room over though, in case she needs to rest.” Izayoi bowed her head in acquiescence, floating back toward the keep in that elegant way Kagome envied with her own mother following close behind. Seeing their mothers’ friendship caused a warm feeling in her heart.  _ Or maybe that’s heartburn... _

Her nausea had mostly subsided in the last few weeks, but there were still times when she became queasy with intense emotions or when she hadn’t been eating properly. She had no idea how Kikyo was going to respond to Inuyasha telling her to never bother his wife again and that he had no intention whatsoever of leaving his mate. They didn’t want to reveal the pup’s existence quite yet, so that would not be part of the discussion.

"I'm glad we told them what's going on." Kagome tossed him a faintly confused look. "If… if Kikyo tries to create a problem, at least our mothers know and understand."

"I was thinking about that earlier. Your mother said to me right at the beginning that you'd never talked about marriage before. Did your family not know about Kikyo?"

“Eh. Kind of. They knew Kikyo’s family was interested in her marrying me and that we were spending time together when the noble families visited the keep. Her mother started dropping hints as soon as we met.” He sighed. “Kikyo asked me to talk to my father, and I had planned to, but then everything changed.” Kagome stopped short, catching him off guard. Her head was lowered and she was breathing in a pointed way that told him she was trying to settle her stomach. “Kagome, did you eat?”

She didn’t respond right away. “I… That’s when you met me. You were going to talk to your father about marrying Kikyo before you…” Her words cut off as she took a sharp breath in.

“Kagome,” he called, reacting to her discomfort before he even realized he was scenting it. “Kagome, what’s wrong?” Tears trailed down her face and the inuhanyou fought the urge to panic. “Koi, I can’t fix it if I don’t know what’s wrong.”

“You really did give up everything to save me,” she whimpered into his suikan, gripping the fabric in white-knuckled fingers.

Inuyasha let out a breath to calm his youkai. It hated that his mate was upset. “Kagome, look at me,” he murmured, taking her shoulders in his hands to put just enough space between them so he could lift her chin. “I already told you. I made a choice that day. Even if I didn’t realize it at the time, I chose to intervene, I chose to bring you here. My youkai was howling at me the whole time and I tried to ignore it. Once I started listening… I don’t know how I was able to resist it so long.” She took a shuddering breath in and blew it out slowly. “I know it doesn’t make sense to you. I talk about my youkai half like it's… not part of me. With you, I finally feel like a whole being. I’m not just half youkai or half human. I’m whole. I’m me.”

“Inuyasha…”

“You need to stop thinking that I made a mistake.” She froze, looking up at him with startled guilt written all over her face. “I make a lot of mistakes. But you… you are not one of them.” He gently brushed her stomach with his fingertips. “Never a mistake.” Kagome sniffled a few times, but was able to calm enough to dry her tears. “If you don’t want to be in there, I understand.”

“Do you not want me there?” she asked, a little shocked.

“I do want you there. I don’t want there to be any misunderstanding about how I feel.” He took a deep breath, leaning down to kiss her softly. “I love you,” he murmured. Kagome sobbed out a laugh. “I just worry about upsetting you, that’s all.”

“I’ll be alright, with you there.”

* * *

Kagome was very glad that her nausea had mostly passed and that she was only showing if one knew what to look for. Kikyo’s cold stare when she entered the room was enough to set her on edge, but with Inuyasha at her side, Kagome felt calmer than she anticipated. A few weeks ago would have been a completely different story. “My lord Inuyasha, I did not expect the pleasant surprise of your wife’s presence.” She felt his hand tighten on hers under the edge of his suikan sleeve. Kagome wasn’t entirely sure if it was for her benefit or his own. Kikyo knelt across from them, graceful as ever, her kimono falling perfectly into place as she settled. Kagome had a momentary hesitation. Kikyo was, at least visually, the wife Inuyasha deserved. Her dark hair was pulled into an elaborate style with pins and combs which made Kagome regret only wearing the combs Izayoi had given her to pull the front away from her face. Unfortunately, she got headaches easily if her hair was too tight or felt too heavy.  _ This early pregnancy stuff is way harder than I thought! Yuka never let on at all! _

“It was important to me that Kagome be here.”

“I see. I would guess, then, that this is not a social call.”

Inuyasha took a deep breath and blew it out. “No. It has come to my attention that there may be some misunderstanding as to my loyalties.” To her credit, Kikyo’s eyes hardly flicked to Kagome, but the accusation was clear. “We had a relationship that, at one point, could have become a marriage.”

“That was also my understanding. Until unforeseen circumstances changed that.” Kikyo’s tone was pointed and she did little to hide the disdain in her gaze when she looked at the cause of that change. “You are married, Lord Inuyasha. I am not sure why you feel the need to…”

“I know that you tried to cast doubt on my commitment, Kikyo.” She stilled, blinking in stunned silence. “The way things ended between us must not have felt final to you. I apologize for that.” The growl in his voice indicated he didn’t feel that remorseful. “But trying to make my wife, my  _ mate _ , think that I would be unfaithful is crossing the line. I have never marked anyone but Kagome and I never will.” Kikyo opened her mouth to protest, then shut it again. Kagome could see the faintest flush rising on her cheeks. Embarrassment. Kikyo felt shame, not for what she’d done, but for being called out by Inuyasha for it.

“That is your right, my lord.”

“It’s not just my right, it’s my choice. Kagome is my choice,” he emphasized.

The young lady stiffened her spine, trying to look down her nose at them as best she could. “You have made yourself clear, Lord Inuyasha.”

Kagome felt the rise of her husband’s youki and clenched her free hand in her lap to avoid pressing it to her stomach reflexively. “Have I? Your scent makes me think you don’t believe me.” 

This time Kikyo flushed deeply with anger. She whispered his name in an admonishing tone. Kagome felt him twitch. “I cannot believe that you would give up on such a perfect match without a second thought. We are good for each other. This territory needs strong leadership. This woman…”

Inuyasha rose to his feet, a snarl on his lips. “This woman is my lady and you will be respectful!”

“She does not deserve it!”

“No, Kikyo, you are the one who was never fit to be my mate. You could never have been the mate of an inuyoukai. You wouldn’t have wanted to.” Kagome ducked her head and breathed slowly. Now was not the time to get sick. Now was not the time to show weakness.  _ I cannot let her know about the baby yet. _ Kagome sighed in relief as Inuyasha reigned himself in, evidently picking up on her distress. “Just a word about me noticing your scent and you have your back up like an angry cat. It is part of who I am. That will never change.”

“It is impolite to…”

Inuyasha growled again, silencing her. “For an inuyoukai, it is part of breathing to smell the scents around us. Scent is essential to us. I know more about my mate and her state in one breath than she can tell me in a whole conversation.” He sighed, snaking his hand down to help his wife to her feet. “You would never have been willing to fully accept me for who and what I am, Kikyo. You will be happier with a human man. Move on from this and find him.”

If he hadn’t already been sure of his decision, stating aloud that Kikyo should marry another and feeling no answering rise from his youkai half made it clear he felt nothing for her in that capacity. She was an acquaintance, a friend at best. It had taken Kagome repeatedly showing him that his youkai was nothing to be ashamed of before he finally understood that he shouldn’t have to hide that part of himself to be accepted. “So your words, your promises, meant nothing?”

“That is enough!” All of the occupants of the room were startled by the outburst, Kagome more than anyone. But she couldn’t stand by and listen to this woman belittle her husband, her mate, the father of her child. A noble man who didn’t always feel he deserved to be loved for himself. “You cannot speak to Lord Inuyasha that way. I don’t care what your history is with him. He is an honorable man who never intended to break his promises to you or to anyone else.” Kagome took a fortifying breath. “Lady Kikyo, you must be upset. It is understandable, but that does not justify your behavior.”

“How dare…”

“No! How dare you? He was kind, gentle, and respectful to you. Circumstances changed. He did not betray you, he did not sneak around. He was honest with you from the beginning about what happened and what he intended to do.  _ You _ tried to go behind his back to scare me off. I almost let you! Well no more. I will stand beside my mate and I will not entertain a single word against his character or his faithfulness. If you have nothing else to say, the young man outside will see you out.” Inuyasha stood in awe of his wife. Her eyes burned with determination in a way he had not really seen since that first day in the woods.

Not only was he awed, he was burning for her.

“You heard the lady,” he said into the silence created by his wife’s speech, making Kikyo jump. He smirked, making a point of showing a little fang to emphasize the message. He was no ordinary human man, he was bound to Kagome, and he was damn proud of it. Kikyo mustered what pride she felt she had left and stood, exiting the room with little more than a glare in their direction. “Kagome,” he breathed, scooping her into his arms as her strength seemed to leave her. He chuckled. “There’s the woman I love,” he purred against her ear, kissing her hair.

“That was rude of me,” she murmured.

“She needed to hear it.” He kissed her again. “And so did I.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully this chapter doesn't leave a bad taste for Kikyo in your mouth. I was striving for a little more balance for her character and I plan to get a bit more into her backstory/motivations in the future.


	11. Masquerade: An Inuparents Side Story

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izayoi is the daughter of a lesser lord, mostly comfortable in her life... until whispers of youkai stealing women reach her ears. And someone close to her is next. Izayoi finds herself at the manor house hosting what might seem like a masquerade, if you didn't know the dark truth. A truth Touga is fighting to rectify when he encounters the charming Little Rabbit who doesn't back down from a fight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was fortunate to get inspiration and permission from @heavenin--hell on Tumblr to use her sketches of Touga and Izayoi wearing their masquerade masks that you'll note in this chapter. Check out all her art because it's astounding!
> 
> CW: Heavy petting, violence, blood

Art by @Heavenin-Hell

* * *

There were whispers. There were always whispers. Sinister murmurs of the ways of youkai, or the young women that disappeared… Were they stolen, or run away with lovers, or were they eaten? Izayoi had been able to ignore them up until now because no one she knew had ever been the subject of those whispers. Now she wanted to hear every detail, because it meant her friend's life.

Misako had been her handmaiden for the last five years and they had grown close in that time. Izayoi confided in her, counted her as a friend. Misako's family was poor, but with her appointment to the manor house, it had elevated their status to some degree. An elevation her father had seen fit to ruin with gambling… or so the rumors said. Izayoi knew Misako was ashamed of the rumors around her family and sought to rise above them by being an exemplary employee.

That might work for men. Women were subject to much… stricter standards.

The tapestries that hung in her father’s study were large, thick and difficult to move. Which made them the perfect place for her to hide as she listened in on his conversation with another lesser noble. Their voices were somewhat muffled, so she couldn’t immediately identify who it was, but she suspected it was Takemaru’s father. Izayoi rolled her eyes at even the thought of the man who had been after her hand for nearly a year now. He was fifteen years older and one of the most arrogant men she had ever encountered.

“They are offering a deal, my lord. One we would be foolish to ignore. A few girls…”

“They ask too much. A few girls over a year is very different than several in one day. And the handmaiden is friendly with my daughter. She would be distraught if she disappeared.”

Izayoi covered a gasp. So the whispers were true. Misako had been chosen for… something. The other lord - which she was now positive was Takemaru’s father - scoffed loudly. “You would let a common girl befriend your daughter? My lord…” He tsked. She heard the snap of her father setting down his calligraphy brush in a way that easily conveyed his rising ire. “Let the girl go. It will ensure peace for our territories until after the winter. They gave their word.” A deal of some kind? And the other lord was the middle man… It would explain their rise in wealth over the last few years and the increasing number of women in the nearby territories that disappeared without a trace.

“It is unwise to trust the word of youkai.” Her father paused, clearly thinking. “The family debts are unfortunately high. She would absolve her father’s… commitments with this transaction?”

“Her younger siblings and mother would be safe, and would even have enough to live on for some time.” Izayoi smothered a gasp. Her father was actually considering this! She could tell by the thoughtful tick tick of his brush on the desk surface. “Good then! I will inform my associate.” A cry almost escaped her throat, but the young woman swallowed it down so as not to be caught. There were quick footsteps as Takemaru’s father marched out of her father’s office, success in negotiating his way lightening his feet. Izayoi kept her hand over her mouth as she breathed, her eyes wide. She heard her father sigh, then stand, going to the shoji out to the garden. It snapped closed and she could hear his heavy steps on the veranda outside.

She snuck back out of his study and nearly sprinted through the halls to her chambers, tears pricking at her eyes and sobs choking her. She had to warn Misako! She had to… She had to do _something_ to help Misako and her family. Her poor friend didn’t know the fate that awaited her.

Or so Izayoi thought. “Yes, my lady. I was… informed of my options. It was this or to…” Izayoi could tell by the way she averted her eyes and bit her lip that it was something worse. The only thing worse than an uncertain future at the hands of youkai was…

“No! They wouldn’t!” But even as the words left her mouth, she knew they _would_ send her dear delicate handmaiden to the brothel to work off her father’s gambling debt. Being devoured by a youkai was almost preferable to being at the mercy of drunken human men with any number of unusual or dangerous tastes. At least it would be over faster. “This isn’t right!”

“It is what is, Izayoi,” Misako whispered, using her lady’s given name to punctuate how serious she was about this matter. “I can protect my younger brother and sisters and my mother too. My father will serve your lord father for the next two years to keep him from incurring more debts and to make sure my family is fed. It is… It is for the best.”

The entire thing seemed insane to Izayoi, as she watched her friend smile sadly, resigned to her fate. Even knowing that she had been bartered away to make up for her father's repeated, selfish, mistakes. Even knowing that there was no happiness in her future. She could end up as the sex slave or be eaten alive! And yet she felt no anger. Izayoi was angry enough for the both of them.

After trying again to convince Misako that she should fight back against her situation, Izayoi finally let her go to her own quarters… so she could come up with a plan. She needed to find a way to save her friend from a potentially horrid fate at the hands of some youkai willing to buy a human woman. Misako was not one to go against the grain. Luckily, Izayoi was.

Izayoi didn’t have a problem with youkai as a general rule. She had met her fair share of kind, gentle souls that were youkai or human. She had also met a fair share of terrible devils that were of either race. It was less that Misako would be handed over to a youkai, and more the uncertainty of what could happen to her. There were still youkai who delighted in eating humans, and if her friend ended up in the claws of one like that… Of course, Izayoi’s mind also conjured up the image of a misshapen youkai who wanted to bed a human until she was all used up… No different than being used in the human brothel, really. Neither possibility was pleasant. Though, she did know - or had heard by word of mouth - that there were some youkai out there that had mated with and married humans. But the odds of that being Misako’s life? Izayoi wasn’t willing to take that chance.

She took Misako a cup of tea, neglecting to mention it had a very strong sleeping draught mixed into it. Her handmaiden was too flustered by her mistress bringing _her_ tea, that she didn’t question it. Izayoi waited for her to drop into a deep sleep before carefully moving Misako’s slight frame into her bed and prepared to take the empty spot in her futon. She switched into one of the plainer outfits in Misako's chest and lay down, but found herself too nervous to sleep, laying wide awake until dawn. Heavy footsteps outside the door sent her heart racing, but she fought it down and acted as though she were sleeping too heavily to notice the large man entering the room and sweeping her out of bed like a sack of rice. She bit her lip and reminded herself that she needed to keep her wits about her. That was the only way both she and Misako would make it out of this.

* * *

She was kicking herself for thinking she was brave enough to do this very dangerous thing as the sun fully dipped below the horizon. Misako might have escaped her fate for now, but Izayoi found herself trapped in a darkening room, in a building she didn’t know, with no idea how to get out. “Not my smartest move,” she muttered to herself. The windows were high and small. She doubted that, could she somehow reach them, she would be able to fit through. The room had nothing but the barest necessities, no furniture to stand on and nothing large enough to hit any guards with. “If they don’t just leave me here to rot,” she sighed.

She doubted that very much. There was clearly a purpose for her being here. She could hear muffled crying from several other young women her age in the nearby “cells” and it was making her more and more angry. How dare they lock up these women! And for what, exactly? No one had said anything to her except that trying to get out wouldn’t do her any good.

They had been given a small meal right after arriving and were told that they would be able to eat later. _If they're trying to fatten us up to eat us, they're not doing a very good job_ , she thought while picking through the rice and vegetables. While accustomed to more elaborate meals, Izayoi was not a stranger to simpler fare. However, she was also a robust young woman who ate well and felt weakened by the lack of food throughout the day.

Izayoi was interrupted from her musings by the stomping of feet in the hallway outside her door. She pressed her ear to the wood in hopes of gathering some kind of information before something came through it. More crying and gruff voices giving instructions she couldn't understand. The young lady cursed the thick wood that muffled sound and kept her from learning anything more about her situation.

Then the latch was clacking on her door, forcing her to back away to give herself room to maneuver if necessary. The door swung open into the room, allowing her captors in. Izayoi scanned them for weaknesses, scowling when they presented a large and united front which made it impossible for her to slip past them.

The bigger of the two, some kind of animal youkai with patchy black fur, lunged into the room to grab hold of her. “Oh ho! Even prettier than they said! That don’t happen too often.” The growling voice did nothing to improve the overall demeanor of the youkai nearly salivating over her. His grip on her wrist was tight and she could not wiggle free. Hands the size of spades and arms to support them, he was no pushover. Izayoi was glad she hadn’t irritated him yet, because she had a feeling her bones would have snapped like kindling under that kind of pressure.

“Don’t manhandle the product, you idiot! You know the lordsss don’t like damaged goodsss.” Izayoi couldn’t imagine a more slithery sounding voice and it was appropriate for the snake youkai, staring at her with his tongue flicking out to smell the air. “She’ll get usss a good tip, no matter what they choose to do with her.”

“Always better when they bed them,” her captor said with a shrug, letting her arm drop. “This one might be mating material if she weren’t human.”

“Just give her the masssk and the damn dresss. We have othersss to deal with.” He spun around, slithering out of the room while the other one tossed a gown and a face mask on the futon. Izayoi scowled after them, flinching when the door slammed shut and the lock slid into place. So much for overpowering her captor.

The gown was deep pink in color, beautiful, but much less modest in cut than she would typically wear. Nose wrinkling in disgust, she set it aside to study the mask. It was only meant to cover the upper half of her face, holes for her to see through and delicately painted markings along the forehead and temples. The odd part was the little rabbit-like ears that stood at attention at the front. It was sweet, in a way. Were the circumstances completely different, she would be excited to wear it.

Knowing the consequences were grim for her if she chose _not_ to change into the clothing provided for her, Izayoi slipped out of her borrowed dress and into the new one. It fit perfectly, much to her irritation, which meant it was more revealing in the bosom and there was no give in the fabric to cover herself more. “Disgusting. No proper lady in her right mind would wear this…” But she supposed that was the point. She was being presented on a platter to whomever these lords were and she was meant to look as appealing as possible. “Damn,” she muttered. Another less than proper thing to do, but in that moment, she didn’t care.

* * *

This was not typically Touga’s fête of choice. He had made a point to refuse all invitations in the past due to his disgust with the practice. There were not many who still took part in the “food” part of a “Food, Mood, or Brood” ball, but the fact that there were still some out there who would happily devour one of these poor young women was revolting to him. Touga, otherwise known as the Inu no Taisho, had the odd reputation of being friendly with humans where most youkai simply avoided them when possible.

He had come tonight with a different goal in mind, his host none the wiser.

However, there was something distracting him from his initial mission. At first it was just an inkling, and then something was completely redirecting his attention. The scent tickling his nose when he entered the house earlier in the evening, at first light and then with more strength, could no longer be ignored. He was not often at the beck and call of his baser instincts, but in this moment, Touga could not avoid the pull on his nose. He spent the earlier part of the human auction - masquerading as a masquerade ball - discreetly sniffing each of the women as they were more or less paraded past him. None of them smelled right and most were so terrified they smelled sour anyway. How did any of his fellow youkai find that appealing to consider bedding one of them, or get in the “mood” to attempt it? These poor women would be no match for him, even if their scent were the one tantalizing his nostrils. Needless to say, he was startled to find her almost literally dropped into his arms, wide eyed beneath the mask she wore.

“Hello... Rabbit, is it?” he murmured. “I’ve got you.” His hands naturally went to her hips to keep her balance. Her fingers curled in his lapels for a moment before she reared back from him, long black hair swishing in her wake. “Calm, my Little Rabbit, I won’t hurt you.” She stared, open skepticism in her dark eyes. She didn’t fear him, exactly, but she was certainly wary. And with good reason. Perhaps it was wishful thinking, but Touga felt that this one was different from the others. He sensed fire in this one. He offered her a slight bow to show her he was a gentleman. "My lady, you may call me Touga." He watched her hesitate from under his dog mask before she gracefully offered one in return. _That's breeding_ , he thought, _this one isn't like the others. What is she doing here, I wonder_. He barely withheld a grin, offering her his arm and less surprised when she took it as a well-bred lady would. “Your name, my lady?”

“Is of no importance to you, is it?” she quipped, eyes roving the room. She was a bit obvious in her search for an escape, but he said nothing. “You only care what I taste like.”

Touga was completely unprepared for the sharp needle of heat that hit his gut at her words, her fiery scent wrapping around him. He had never, in his very long life, felt such sudden attraction. But he quelled it, his brain coming to an understanding. She thought he meant to eat her flesh and bone. “N-No. I do not eat humans,” he murmured to her. The glance out of the corner of her eye was cutting. Touga was shaken by how deeply he felt it. The inuyoukai cleared his throat to gather his wits and carefully walked her toward the edge of the room so they might have a little more room to speak.

“What is it you wish of me?” she snapped. “Do not expect a willing…”

Touga pressed a finger to her lips to silence her, glancing at another youkai guest as they walked toward where there were still many human women on display in the center of the room. He pulled her in close in an effort to appear enrapt in examining her scent. The other youkai wandered past without a second look. “I am not here to find a meal… or otherwise,” he whispered against her ear. She shuddered in his embrace. Her scent further sunk its claws into his instinct to keep her close. “There are a few of those women who will be taken to wife, or taken as a mate, as we call it. It was arranged for them to be brought here in this manner by their youkai intended so that their families would not be shamed.” She wiggled against him, a small sound escaping her throat.

Finally, he realized she was smothering giggles. Was this tiny human laughing at him?! “That tickles,” she chortled when he finally let her back far enough so he could look in her eyes. There was a different kind of sparkle in her eye from before, one that spoke of a joyous young woman who loved to smile.

“Oh? The Little Rabbit is ticklish behind the ears?” he teased, tucking her against him once more. She protested as he took to blowing on the shell of her ear, demanding he finish explaining himself. “Yes, fine, Lil Rabbit.”

“Stop calling me that. I’m not… I’m not a rabbit.”

“Here, you are. Do you see? All the women are wearing prey animal masks.” She turned, glancing around at the other women. Sure enough, they all had on masks that coincided with prey creatures: mouse, squirrel, crane, quail, weasel, chipmunk and deer. “And if you will not give me your name...” he reminded her.

She studied him in silence for a few moments. “M-Misako.”

Touga frowned. He could smell the lie on her. “You need not hide your true identity from me, Rabbit. I do not intend to hurt you.”

She studied him, looking for any hint of insincerity. Touga was actually a little nervous under her scrutiny. It had been a… very long time since he cared much about what someone else thought of him. “If you are not here seeking a meal or a… partner, then what are you looking for?” she asked eventually.

The Inu no Taisho looked around for others who might be listening in. “Perhaps we should discuss your future out here,” he said at an intentionally louder volume before moving them into the empty hallway, sliding the door shut behind them. “I came with the intention of releasing the women who are not here to meet their intended mates.”

Her eyes widened under her mask and Touga felt the need to remove it so he could see the full range of her facial expressions. He only resisted knowing she wouldn’t want him touching her face that way. “I see. So Misa… I will be rescued by you? Alone?”

He smirked. “I may not look like much, but I’m capable.”

The clack of a shoji further down the hallway and the heavy footfalls of another youkai alerted them that they would not be alone for long. They both looked around for somewhere to hide, but found no alcoves or other doorways close enough. About to lift her into his arms to run, Touga was startled by the pull of a small hand at his nape, dragging him down until soft lips pressed against his. Her kiss was desperate and a bit hard, forcing Touga to edge back enough to allow them to breathe through their noses. She was not experienced in this, but that mattered very little when her lips parted and her taste and scent assaulted him at the same time. Touga growled, those baser instincts he had been ignoring earlier rearing up at the feel of her pressed against him. He couldn’t stop himself from turning to pin her slight form to the wall, hand burying itself in her long hair and his entire body curling around her to hide her from sight.

His little human whimpered, her scent spiking with arousal at the roughness of his kiss, a gasp escaping when he nipped her lower lip. He couldn’t help trailing his tongue across her jaw and down her neck, relishing her soft mewls for more.

“Sampling the merchandise before purchasing? Bad form, Inu no Taisho.” At the interruption, he saw red.

A snarl pulled at his lips and he turned to rip apart whatever fool dared keep him from his… “Wait! Please!” A soft voice whispered a little desperately. Her gentle scent drew him out of his rage and allowed him to see the unfamiliar ookami backing away.

“Do not question me,” he rumbled darkly. The ookami nodded and scuttled back into the main hall post haste. He took another breath to calm himself before turning to find his Little Rabbit staring at him in awe. “I am sorry you had to see that.” He leaned into her once more, nose buried in her neck. Her scent soothed his heated blood until he no longer felt like tearing anything apart.

“There are those that fear you,” she murmured. He shrugged. “So you _are_ capable of saving us.” Touga chuckled as he went from gentle nuzzles to soft kisses. “He is gone,” she reminded him without making a move to push him off, and he grunted that he had heard her. “You no longer need to… ah…” she gasped sharply when his fangs gently pressed into her neck just behind her ear.

“I need your name, Little Rabbit,” he hissed against the shell, delighted when she took a shuddering breath. “Please.”

“I-Izayoi.”

Touga let out a sigh of relief, letting her name wash over him. “Izayoi,” he murmured, nibbling her chin until he could find her lips again. He needed her more fiercely than anything else in that moment. Her soft breaths, the scent of her in his nose, the feel of her lips sliding against his as he kissed her. “Izayoi, I…”

“Touga-sama,” she gasped, startling him as much with her address as the suddenness of her cry. “We are supposed to be freeing the others,” she huffed, pupils blown wide as she swallowed. She looked like a trapped rabbit in that moment, shaking him out of his lustful haze and reminding him that she did not know him and that he was, in fact, here for another purpose entirely. He couldn’t resist pressing one last fierce kiss to her lips, almost regretting it when she surged up to meet him. Letting her go was even more difficult than he knew this rescue was going to be. He quickly explained the plan so she would be prepared.

“Come, Little Rabbit, we must alert my compatriot that it is time to create our distraction.” Every fiber of his being wanted to simply take her and run for it, but his honor would not allow him to abandon his mission. He led her to the main hall and reluctantly let her back into the throng of young women standing beside the podium at one end of the room. He kept an eye on the rabbit ears as he moved into hearing range of his fellow inuyoukai. "Nobuo."

"You have been… distracted."

"Yes, well," he muttered, clearing his throat. "She will help direct the women when the time comes."

"Who is she?"

Touga hesitated before speaking the words he had been refusing to allow into his head the entire time he was with her. "My true mate, I believe." To his credit, Nobuo's face only twitched slightly as he took in the somewhat shocking information. "Is everything prepared?"

"Of course, my Lord."

A man, human, moved to the podium and began addressing everyone in a booming voice. "Welcome all! It is our great pleasure to have you here tonight. I hope you have had the chance to survey the possibilities and are ready to see where they lead." His wide mouth curled in a lascivious grin. "Some of them look... good enough to eat, no?" Touga bit back a growl at the human's off color joke while a few dark chuckles of amusement bubbled through the crowd. Though, there was more uncomfortable shifting of feet than anything.

The human male took hold of the closest woman, showcasing her features and making a joke of her shapely hips. She was clearly crying underneath her chipmunk mask, fear and shame radiating off of her. Nobuo's upper lip curling in a silent snarl was the only sign of his fury. Touga pressed a hand to his vassal's shoulder to keep them both grounded. The woman was returned to the group and both inuyoukai froze in anticipation. "Now, would be ideal. They are all grouped together."

"Yes, my Lord." Nobuo practically disappeared, fading into the crowd so quickly one might think he hadn't been there at all. Touga waited none too patiently while keeping his golden gaze locked on his Little Rabbit. He could not lose sight of her.

A collective gasp went through the crowded hall as two quick successive explosions rocked the opposite side of the manor. Touga locked eyes with Izayoi just as chaos erupted.

She had successfully gathered a small group of cowering women to her sides, but with youkai shoving to get to the doors or to their mates, she was struggling to keep them calm. She raised her voice to be heard, begging them to trust her as she moved them all to the doorway behind the podium. 

"You!" Touga moved toward her just as the human grabbed her arm, rage in his beady eyes. With so many youkai in his way, he couldn't get to her fast enough. "I know you. You're the little bitch who keeps refusing my son. You're not supposed to be here!"

"Leave her alone!" Touga roared, pushing the chest that suddenly appeared in front of him. Which didn't budge.

"Been getting friendly with the merchandise before paying. That ain't right." The hulking bear youkai tutted at him. An evil smirk curled his lip and he swung a giant fist at Touga's head. The inuyoukai narrowly avoided it, dropping to a crouch and trying to sweep the behemoth's legs from under him. "I told them I didn't trust you being here, being a human sympathizer and all," he continued almost jovially, unfazed by Touga's attempt, snatching the back of his suikan and lifting him off the ground like an unruly child.

"Put me down, you beast!" Her cry across the room had Touga’s nerves on fire. He pumped his legs to gain enough momentum to push off the bear's chest and flip himself over, straddling his massive arm, allowing his suikan to slide off his torso to his waist. The bear youkai was too stunned to react right away and his head rocked back with the impact of Touga's fist. But he recovered quickly, too quickly, sending the inuyoukai partially through flooring with the combination of the hand still twisted in his clothing and the opposite elbow catching him in the jaw. Touga saw stars, his ears ringing from the blow. He tasted blood in his mouth. A large foot compressed his chest and he struggled to breathe. “Touga-sama!”

"You are nothing but a weak dog, begging at the hand of your master," the bear sneered. “She’s nothing but a pretty little…” Touga snarled, hands gripping the sides of the foot trying to crush his ribcage. Fury in his amber eyes, he heaved the beast off of him and lunged, his fangs bared.

Only to turn at the enraged scream of Izayoi.

The human was trying to drag her away from the group of women, a snake youkai corralling the others. He could see Nobuo fighting his way toward them, but neither one of them would make it at this rate. Touga let out a rage-filled shout, launching himself toward them. Only to release a pained wheeze as the wind was knocked from his lungs, the meaty hand around his ankle stopping his momentum and slamming him into the floor. Still he tried to pull himself forward, claws digging into the floorboards, the ear-piercing screech of wood peeling away under his exertion. His youki pulsed, red filling his vision which was trained only on his mate. The bear twisted his leg, long claws digging into his flesh, threatening to snap the bone. It might have, were Touga a lesser youkai. He screamed in pain and anger, other foot striking the bear in the nose to force him to release his ankle. Leg free, but openly bleeding from claw marks, the inuyoukai hobbled toward the group by the podium. 

By now, most of the superfluous youkai had fled, only those who ran the auction still fending off his and Nobuo's efforts to get to the human women. "Release her!" he boomed. The humans all froze except for Izayoi, desperately clawing at the hand around her upper arm. Touga felt his blood boiling as he fought through weaker youkai to get to her. Claws dug at his arms and ribs, he narrowly dodged blows meant for his head, taking them in the back or shoulder instead. Still he moved forward.

The human finally decided his life was more important than taking Izayoi, shoving her to the ground and running. Touga watched in horror as the snake scooped her up instead, a small blade at her throat. Nobuo had finally broken through the line keeping him from getting to the group of women. His sharp eyes took in the predicament they were in with calm, practiced, precision. Touga saw his hesitation. Save Izayoi for the sake of his lord? Protect his own mate still crying under her chipmunk mask? Or protect his lord as he was sworn to do? As their eyes met, Touga knew that his vassal understood what needed to be done.

He faded from sight just as Touga roared out a challenge to the youkai left fighting. He let his blood take over, his animal nature swelling to the surface. His face started to stretch, fur sprouting along his entire frame as he grew in size. He contained it only enough to keep from knocking the house down while the women were still inside. The snake flinched, slitted pupils wide, catching Izayoi’s chin enough to draw a prick of blood. Touga’s howl shook the rafters, saliva dripping from his jaws as he snarled down at the youkai holding her hostage. “Back down, Inu no Taissssho, or I let her bleed,” the snake shouted. His hand was shaking, and that was almost more dangerous than his threat. Some part of Touga felt the slice of claws, of blades, along his legs but he remained still.

Until Nobuo reappeared directly beside the snake, giving the youkai no time to react before he was gutted. Nobuo grasped Izayoi before she even realized what had happened behind her, scooping up the woman with the chipmunk mask and shouting at the other women to follow. Touga caught one last glimpse of Izayoi’s eyes before they were out of the building. He went into a flurry of motion as the last of them disappeared. 

Touga tried to rip apart every youkai in range of his teeth, yelping when a large blade stuck into his side, glancing off his ribs. The bear youkai had regained consciousness and had leapt up onto his back to tear at his shoulders. He shook him off, but couldn’t catch hold of him to crush him. The Inu no Taisho had been outnumbered before, but never with such high stakes. He _had_ to keep them all there inside the building instead of chasing after the retreating women.

“You are a traitor to our kind! All over a silly little human wench,” the bear roared at him, trying again for his jugular. The Inu no Taisho batted him aside with a giant paw. A lucky swing. The bear crashed through the wall with a roar and did not return. At almost the same moment, a neko caught hold of Touga’s ear, shredding it. Touga couldn’t hold back a whine of pain, slowly shrinking as his youki struggled to keep up with his blood loss. He wasn’t going to last much longer.

A hiss and a yowl erupted from the neko when Touga was able to get a hold of one of the blades used against him earlier and sliced across the feline youkai’s chest. Huffing for breath, Touga was back in his humanoid form, his vision beginning to blur. Blood from his shredded canine ear was now trailing down his temple and the side of his neck, hot and slick. He pushed himself on his weak leg, needing to get through the doorway and at least catch a hint of her scent one last time before he could never find it again. Just her clear, clean, calming scent in the midst of all this carnage. “Izayoi,” he murmured. Part of his brain understood that he was becoming delirious from the loss of blood. He needed to get out of that house.

Touga was beginning to feel that this might be his last night. The last thing he wanted was his final moments to be spent covered in the blood of other youkai and staring at the ceiling of a house he would just as soon destroy. So he pushed further, managing one last leap away from the property and into the woods, his injured leg giving way upon landing. He crumpled to the ground on the edge of a clearing, gasping in pain and exhaustion. There was a possibility he tasted blood on his breath as he exhaled, but it didn’t really matter anymore. They had passed through here and he was able to catch a hint of her scent on the wind.

The breeze was cool. Or maybe that was his body losing heat as it weakened. The moon was bright and he felt bathed in its glow. There were soft rustling sounds in the brush that he could just make out over the pounding in his head. Probably rabbits in the undergrowth disturbed by his landing. _Not the worst place to die_ , he thought. His only regret was not getting the chance to see her once last time.

“Izayoi. Li…” he was interrupted by a coughing fit that left him pale and shaking. Maybe that blade had snuck between the ribs a little. “My little Rabbit,” he finished in a whisper. As if speaking her name conjured her scent, he felt it fill his nose. “Lil Rabbit.”

“Touga…” a ghostly whisper of her voice echoed in his muddled head.

He smiled sadly to himself, coughing once more. “As long as… you are safe, I am happy,” he wheezed, the moonlight fading from his vision as he slipped into the oblivion that awaited him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *RUNS*


	12. Masquerade Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izayoi is drawn to Touga's side, needing to know what became of him. Their fates become ever more intertwined.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: Descriptions of wounds/blood/"medical" care; Light lime content

The pounding of her heart had pulled her back toward the house, a clearing in the woods. The inuyoukai warrior had been too busy getting the other women to a safe place to keep an eye on her when she slipped away, desperate to know what had become of Touga. Her slippered feet had taken her through the darkened forest with the swiftness of the name he had given her. The smell of smoke drifted in the air, telling her she was getting closer, but she had no idea where he might be. Again the pounding of her heart seemed to direct her, deeper into the forest, until she spotted him sprawled on his back.

Izayoi finally got a look at her saviour without the dog mask obscuring his features. He was by far one of the most handsome men she had ever seen in her life. Except for the bruises and blood that were blooming across his face. She had called upon whatever gods might offer assistance as she struggled to think of what to do. She needed to stop the bleeding in his side, his leg. Without thought, she tore the bottom from her dress, wrapping his mangled calf. She had to use tattered parts of his own suikan to wrap his ribs, not strong enough to lift or roll his much larger frame by herself.

He barely groaned, even when she knew what she was doing had to be hurting him, the tiniest of whimpers breaking her heart. Once, he cried out her name, a strangled sound in his throat that reminded her of when her grandmother was very ill. Then Touga stopped breathing for a terrifyingly long moment and she willed him to breathe until  _ finally _ he took a rattling breath that shook her down to her soul. A sound that also reminded her of her grandmother… just before she died.

The warrior showed up shortly after she got the worst of the bleeding covered. "My Lady! I…" He took a long sniff. "Come. I will carry him. But we  _ must _ leave." He hefted his lord into his arms, less gently than Izayoi would have liked, but his urgency drove her feet to movement. The faint sound of shouting in the distance let her know why they needed to hurry. “Quickly! We cannot be spotted, or all will have been for naught.” She didn’t need to be told a second time. 

More oriented now that she was not in a mad dash to find Touga, she was able to direct him to an abandoned hut that she often explored in the forest near her father’s land. It had belonged to an older woman and her daughter many years before, but the daughter had disappeared…

“It will have to do for now. Can you do something to throw them off?” she asked the inuyoukai hopefully, still staring at the man who had saved her lying essentially motionless on a dusty pallet. He ran his fingers through his short dark hair and sighed, golden eyes internally tracking some sort of plan he was trying to come up with. “Please, sir, I know I have made things harder..”

“You may call me Nobuo. And no, My Lady, I am grateful for the care you show my lord.” He dipped a bow in her direction. “I will find a way to distract those that wish you harm. I must also…” He hesitated before sighing. “I would bring someone here to help you care for him. Is that alright?”

“O-Of course. Thank you, Nobuo-san.” He bobbed another bow before slipping out of the hut on silent feet. Izayoi turned and went about scrounging whatever supplies she could from the small chest in the corner of the bedroom and the clay pots in the kitchen. She bemoaned her lack of knowledge in healing and the lack of fresh water to clean Touga’s wounds. The rain barrel outside had a fine layer of scum on the top, but underneath was fairly clear.

The bits of rags and sheets she was able to shake free of dust, Izayoi used to wipe his face clean, then his neck. She didn’t move the bandages on his chest yet, but cleaned the little bit of his collar bones she could reach with his kosode pushed aside. She carefully cleaned his hands and fingers, tears beginning to fill her eyes as she heard the increasing flutter of his breath in his chest.  _ Breathing shouldn’t sound like that, should it? _ She began to fear that she was simply cleaning him to prepare him for his eternal rest. Did youkai remain behind like humans did, to be burned or buried? She had never seen a youkai die before.

She hoped that she wouldn’t yet.

Minutes or hours later, she wasn’t sure, Nobuo returned with a somewhat familiar face. “Oh, My Lady! Are you alright?” Izayoi bit her lip and nodded to the young woman who had been at her side, wearing a chipmunk mask, for most of the evening before everything exploded. “I am Anzu, Nobuo is…” She glanced at the stoic inuyoukai for confirmation before explaining that he was her Mate. Or would be, eventually. Izayoi had only heard stories, but here was proof that sometimes youkai  _ did _ choose humans to be their life partners instead of a snack. “Rest for a while, I will continue to care for him.” She had a box with her, which she opened when Izayoi moved aside.

It held needles of various sizes and threads to match. “Are you… going to fix his clothes? Is that really important right now?!” Izayoi could distantly hear the rising hysteria in her own voice. Nobuo placed a firm but gentle hand on her shoulder.

“She has a steady hand and knowledge of healing, My Lady.” Her panicked brain couldn’t process what he was trying to tell her. “Anzu will stitch his flesh to slow the blood loss and help his youki to heal him. This… This badly injured, he might not be able to do so on his own.” Izayoi turned horrified eyes to where Anzu was preparing her tools and herself with slow measured breaths. “It might be best that you go in the other room, Lady Izayoi. He may lash out, and I will need to hold him still.” In other words, he couldn’t help his lord and nanny her at the same time. Izayoi held her chin firm and went to sit in the opposite corner of the room, unwilling to leave the side of the man who had, and continued to, risk his life for hers. “As you wish. Do not come near.”

For what felt like days, but was less than a couple of hours, Anzu focused on her task in the muted light of a fire and a lamp that Nobuo had found. Izayoi’s vision drifted in and out of focus as she watched, unable to look away. Touga twitched and whimpered, occasionally calling out for a “Sesshoumaru” or for her. It gutted her not to go to him when he called her name, but she could see the strength it took from Nobuo to hold him down. If she tried to hold his hand, he might crush hers in his delirium and pain.

“I have done what I can,” the other woman murmured eventually. She used a rag to clean her hands of blood and Izayoi could see that they were trembling.

“Rest, I will finish here,” Nobuo said gently, a large hand on Anzu’s shoulder. The soft look they shared had Izayoi blinking back tears. Would she ever know that feeling? Would she ever have a chance to feel cherished like Nobuo so clearly did Anzu?  _ I felt that, for just a moment, _ she thought, biting back a sob as she returned her eyes to the panting form of the inuyoukai who had rescued her. A phantom sensation of his teeth nibbling her chin, his lips softly taking hers for only a moment before they became more intense. Izayoi had never kissed, nor been kissed by, anyone before that night. Part of her never wanted to kiss another ever again.

Izayoi scuttled into the bedroom, stifling her sobs as she went, intent on keeping the others from knowing that she could no longer keep her emotions under any kind of control.

Tears would not help him. Crying would do none of them any good. But that didn’t mean she didn’t shed them. Izayoi felt the sobs well up in her chest so overwhelmingly fiercely that stopping them was impossible. It took over her whole body, choking her and making her feel as though she might shake apart with the force of it. “My Lady, you should…” Nobuo entered the room and froze. He was embarrassed by her show of emotion as much as he was unsure what to do about it.

“Oh move, Nobu,” Anzu spoke with slight exasperation, tugging the tall inuyoukai backward and out of the way. “Lady Izayoi, come now,” she murmured softly, gathering the taller woman to her more ample bosom. “He is very strong.”

“I-I-I know, b-b-but what if he…”

Anzu hushed her softly and began rocking her. Izayoi found her sobs lessening, sniffles taking their place. “You have been so strong, My Lady, it is alright to lean on others once in a while.” Anzu continued to pat her back and lightly hum a tune. Izayoi, exhausted, drifted into a light doze. Part of her registered that they were talking about her, but she was too tired to do anything but rest her head on Anzu’s shoulder. “She’ll make herself sick,” murmured the voice just under her ear.

“He is in bad shape, My Love. I understand her worry.” The endearment almost sounded strange in his even toned voice. “She was stupid to go back for him. Brave. But stupid.”

“That’s unkind, Nobu-dear. She obviously cares for him.”

“And he, her. Which is why he wanted me to get you both to safety. Her safety was worth his life to him.”

Anzu scoffed. “You inuyoukai and your protectiveness to the edge of death. If you had been the one left behind, I would have come back for you.”

"And I would have thought it just as unwise." A pause indicated he was rethinking his stance. "I appreciate your loyalty, Anzu. You know how important that is to us." His voice grew closer. "But I couldn't live with myself if something happened to you. Why do you think we went to such lengths to save you?" The warmth under her shifted.

"And you saving me at the cost of your life? I would rather die at your side." A soft growl rumbled. "Now go check on his lordship. I will keep the young lady company so she may rest. She has been through much."

"Yes, My Sweet," he murmured in a tone that implied he would listen but was humoring her a little. Izayoi felt and heard the lilting tune again until she fell deeply asleep.

Waking sometime later, laid out on a thin pallet, she curled herself up before stretching. Joints popped in protest of the movement, but she was able to get upright after another moment. Izayoi rubbed the sleep from her eyes, wincing at the light coming through the small window. She heard shuffling in the other room but paused before going in. What if she was just in the way? What if he was… worse?  _ How much worse could he be than last night? _ she wondered.

Little did she know.

"Ah. My lady. I don't know that…" Nobuo was silenced by the sharp look she tossed him. Pressing his lips together, obviously annoyed by the increased number of high-handed human women he had to deal with, he stepped aside. Izayoi couldn't help a shocked gasp.

Pale. He was deathly pale. She couldn’t hear him breathing. “Oh,” she gulped.

“Wait, My Lady, he’s not gone.”

Izayoi blinked back tears she hadn’t noticed were welling in her eyes. “He’s not?”

Anzu came to her side, patting her hand. “No, dear heart. He has lost a lot of blood, but he is healing.”

“I-I can’t hear him breathing anymore. It was so loud.”

“Ah. Yes, I believe his lung was punctured last night. Sometime early this morning, he coughed up a lot of… Well he was breathing much easier afterward,” Nobuo explained, tempering his description at a hard glance from his Mate. Izayoi trembled as she stepped to his side, collapsing to her knees and carefully touching his hand. It was warm, despite his lack of color, and she clung to it with both of her hands. “He has been calling for you, but we felt you needed the rest after your ordeal.”

“Touga-sama?” she breathed. He sucked in a breath through his nose at the sound of her voice.

“Lil Rabbih,” he slurred through his swollen lower lip. Izayoi sobbed a surprised laugh.

“Yes, it’s me. I’m here,” she murmured, lifting his hand to press to her cheek, giving and taking the warmth they both so desperately needed. She watched his golden eyes blink as best they could, one so blackened and swollen he almost couldn’t open it. “You should rest, Touga-sama. You were very gravely injured.”

“Stah calling me thah,” he rumbled, the authoritative tone he was going for lost by how weak he was and the impact his lip was having on his speech. “Jus Touga.”

“If that is your wish. Please, rest.” He was mollified by her agreement and he slipped back into sleep, not allowing her hand out of his. She remained by his side the rest of the day, helping him to drink when he was awake enough and singing softly when he was restless. By that evening, he was more alert and the swelling in his face had gone down enough for him to keep his eyes open.

"You must go home, Izayoi." She shook her head. Touga swallowed back his own emotions and tried again. "Rabbit, please, you have been missing for two days now. Your family will think you dead."

"But you still can't move…"

"And Nobuo and Anzu are capable of caring for me until I can." Delicate black brows lowered over dark eyes, her face reminding him of a storm cloud. "Izayoi," he sighed, "I wish it were different. But you must return to your family, or they will come hunting for you. I am surprised they haven't yet." Despite loving the stubborn set of her chin, he needed her to understand. "Please, if they hurt you because they think you ran away…"

"I will tell my father what happened."

"Will he believe you?" She opened her mouth to immediately reply with confidence, then hesitated and closed it. "You said he was complicit with that human bastard running the auction. With you missing, that man could have already gone to him and told him lies."

She couldn’t entirely deny his fear out of hand. Her father was not the most compassionate man. He was practical and far more interested in the financial outcomes of crop yields on their land than the wellbeing of his only daughter. But she was also a little surprised that they had not heard any patrols or hunting parties out. “Misako must have told them I switched places with her,” she whispered. Now she feared for her handmaid. As loathe as she was to leave him, she knew that Touga was right. She would need to return home.

Anzu assured her that she would make sure his wounds were healing. Nobuo swore to his lord that he would return her to her home and keep watch until he knew she was safe. Izayoi had gotten another simple dress from Anzu so at least she wasn’t wearing that torn and bloodied mess from before. She felt tears come to her eyes as she was given space to say her goodbyes. “I will miss you, my brave Little Rabbit.” He gave her a lopsided smile. “Thank you, for saving my life.”

“You saved mine first,” she quipped, sniffling. “I… I will see you again.” She was firm, setting her quivering chin and pushing her hands into her lap to hide the way they were shaking. His grin turned sad. “I will. While you are healing here, I will come back and…”

“Hush, Lil Rabbit. I don’t think it would be best for you to…”

“You can’t stop me,” she interrupted. “I will come to visit you here.” Her tone made it final. She didn’t know how hard it was for him to hear the words, to know in that moment that she meant them, but that inevitably she would not return. Either she would change her mind, her parents would convince her of her duties at home, or she would realize the danger of being around a youkai like him.

“Of course. Then I look forward to seeing you again,” he whispered. She smiled at him, whipping the tears from her face and squaring her shoulders. “Goodbye, Izayoi.”

“Goodbye, Touga.”

**_Goodbye, My Love._ **

* * *

  
  


Her return home was strangely… calm. Izayoi had expected a lot of crying from her mother and pointedly sharp words from her father about disappearing for days. She had even expected she would have to fight for Misako’s position or her life. Instead, everything was daintily returned to normal. She was kept under a much closer eye than before, which she had expected at the very least, but other than that, it felt like everyone was biting their tongues.

It made her feel itchy.

Izayoi took extra time in the bath that night, scrubbing at her nails and trying to get Misako to talk to her. It wasn’t working. “You have been very quiet.”

“My Lady, it is not my place to speak.”

“That didn’t really stop you before,” Izayoi muttered a little petulantly. “Don’t you want to know what happened while I was gone?”

“You were visiting an…”

“No one actually believes that nonsense, do they?” Misako’s eyes flicked to hers for a moment. “Did you get in trouble, Misako? Did they punish you for what I did?”

Her handmaid and friend hesitated. “No, Lady. They could not wake me right away and knew that I had been given something.”

Izayoi froze, guilt causing heat to climb her neck. She took a breath. “I’m sorry. I… I wanted to protect you.”

Misako sighed deeply, the rigidity in her spine collapsing. “I know that. I… Thank you, Izayoi. But to put yourself in harm’s way like that?” There was pain, and real fear, in her friend’s voice. Izayoi realized that she had been so worried about her own fear for her friend, and being a hero, that she hadn’t thought much about how it would impact those left behind. "Your father was upset. I think he knew where they had taken you."

Izayoi scowled into the water. "Not where, but he knew who." A faint gasp rang behind her. She softly explained that she knew who was running the auctions and that he had spotted her. "I'm sure they have an agreement to tell that story about me going to visit my aunt because I was ill. What rubbish!"

The two young women sat in silence for some time. "What's he like? Your youkai lord?" Misako breathed, terrified to be overheard.

Izayoi flushed. "He's not… he's not mine."

Misako let out a faint scoff, then cleared her throat to hide it. " He saved your life. He nearly died for you. I think that means  _ something _ ." Despite feeling the same, Izayoi felt the need to minimize it for fear of being horribly, bitterly, disappointed. "You said that there was another human, one that was to be mated to the lord's vassal?"

Talking about the other couple was safer territory. Their easy affection, the open care they displayed despite Nobuo's stern personality. Anzu was a delightful rosy balance for her stoney future mate. "She was so kind to me. Even after everything she had been through too. She saved Touga's life with her skill." Something she couldn't have done.

"Yes, but you found him. She could not have done that if you had not found him first."

Izayoi allowed a little smile. "Yes. I suppose."

With Misako on her side, Izayoi was able to plot ways out of the house to visit Touga and bring him supplies daily. She rarely had more than a few minutes to check on him before she had to be spotted in the gardens or helping Misako carry laundry. Anything to make her father think that she was staying safely within the grounds and within the sight of at least one person at all times. Her father didn’t need to know that sometimes that one person was a convalescent inuyoukai who preferred kissing her to speaking more often than not. Though he had made a point to ask her at least one fact about herself every time he saw her. Her most and least favorite foods. What flowers she liked best. Her least favorite smell. What season she liked the most.

A few days later, she and Misako had developed a better routine and her father seemed to have lessened his watchfulness, she was able to spend longer periods at the hut instead of stopping by several times for short bursts. Which had allowed for more intense kisses. Ones she wanted to drown in. Flushing at her thought, Izayoi darted through the forest to see her inuyoukai lord who was hopefully as impatient to see her.

“Touga, are you… Oh! Hello,” Izayoi chuckled when a familiar youki swelled in greeting as she entered the hut. She turned to find him sitting by the window, his injured leg stuck out straight in front of him. “You aren’t supposed to be up on that leg yet, you know.”

“Hm. Nobuo helped me to the chair, and I have been waiting for you like a trained puppy ever since he left, if you must know,” he growled at her, amber eyes flashing with irritation. “Why did you come so late?”

Izayoi giggled, finally going to his side and patting his cheek. “I’m sorry, Koinu, did you miss me?” she crooned, laughing when he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her against his side. His lips found hers with ease, nibbling and licking at her mouth. She hummed, sinking into him until he let out a yelp. “Oh! Your ribs. See! You need to be more careful!” she scolded him, backing up so she could tug at his kosode and peek at the bandage over where he’d been stabbed.

“You could kiss it better…”

Izayoi scowled at him, lightly slapping his shoulder and bustling off to unwrap the package she had brought him instead of giving in to the temptation he offered. She explained that her parents were preparing the house for some visitor they were trying to impress and she had been told to supervise the cleaning of the main sitting room. “I don’t understand what possible good that does. They are all terrified of displeasing my father by upsetting me, so I let them go about their business and slipped out.”

“I have a feeling your parents wanted them to keep an eye on you, Sneaky Rabbit, not the other way around,” Touga responded with some amusement. She rolled her eyes as she turned to present him with the meal she had brought. “Thank you,” he said with true gratitude. “You are not giving me your own portion, are you?” He eyed her critically, trying to decide if she seemed slimmer, or if it was his worry for her health that made him think that.

“No, Touga. I asked for a second portion from the kitchen to take to an ailing friend.” He gave her a look. “It isn’t a lie.”

“No, but I do not wish for you to get into trouble so that you cannot come here anymore.”

Izayoi smiled, setting the bowl on the table beside him, and brushing hair from his forehead. “Would you miss me, Koinu?” Touga took hold of her chin and pulled her in to show her exactly how much he would miss her.

His lips melted to hers, the soft puff of breath from his nose as he breathed her in making her smile. A slip of tongue heralded a change of intensity as he cupped both her cheeks to keep her close. His tongue flicked out to skim her teeth, inviting her to do the same. He growled when the tip of hers traced a fang, one hand sliding back into her hair. “You know damn well how much I would miss you, woman,” he purred against her ear. She smiled, murmuring that she would miss him too. "Then be by my side," he demanded softly against her lips.

"I am." She giggled when he nipped her lip, soothing the light sting with his tongue. His large hands pulled her waist until she was forced to straddle his lap to keep from hurting his leg.

Touga's breath left him in a rush at the feel of her against him. "Forever. Be by my side forever," he begged, encouraging her into another kiss. Her delicate fingers wove themselves into his loose hair, tugging at him as she took control of the meeting of their lips. She had learned quickly, his Little Rabbit, and she had him growling in moments. His hands found her perfect backside, gripping it and pulling her into him as she bit his lip. "Please, Izayoi, I cannot…" he swallowed thickly, "I need you, My Rabbit, but this is neither the time nor place."

Izayoi let out a little whine, hips shifting over his, shaking his resolve. "Touga." He groaned as she engaged him once more, her soft lips drawing him further into the mire of arousal they would soon be unable to escape. The inuyoukai snarled as he forced himself to set her back, using the pain in his leg and ribs to ground him. "What…"

"I am struggling," he hissed. "If we continue in this way, I will be hard pressed to let you leave."

Izayoi sucked in a shuddering breath. It wasn't that she didn't  _ know _ that what they were doing was not considered appropriate. She knew that no proper lady, especially an unmarried one, would be alone with a dangerously handsome youkai. She definitely wouldn't be allowing such liberties with her person. Izayoi also knew that being with Touga felt right. She forgot all about those rules when she came near him because she couldn't stay away. She was so drawn to him and she thought he felt the same. "I see." Even though she didn't, not really. "Then if I stayed, it would be…"

"Very permanent." The growl in his voice didn't register at first, but when it did, Izayoi jolted from her thoughts and stared at him. His golden eyes glittered with desire, desire she could admit she felt as well. But was there love there? During her visits over the last few days, he had never indicated that he wanted more than this.  _ But he said forever _ , she recalled, hopeful but hesitant.

She turned from him, the intensity of his gaze too much. "My parents would not approve," she finally whispered. He grunted an affirmative. "They expect me to marry," she continued.

"I am aware of the human practice, yes." His tone was impatient, but she was unsure why… until she heard him grunting and realized he was trying to stand on his own. "Now, Izayoi, I can stand," he soothed as he took hold of her shoulders. She didn't comment on the additional weight he rested on her. "If marriage is your wish, then marriage you’ll have. Mating is a much more permanent bond, but I understand that humans are not as long lived as youkai."

A bit confused by his meaning, Izayoi smiled thinly at him. "Yes, there are differences between us." Touga frowned at her, but was distracted by his leg weakening under him. It took both of them almost all their strength to lower him safely to his pallet. "You will have done yourself more harm!" she scolded him, huffing as she handed him his meal and went about checking his leg. 

The bone had set, but the ragged claw marks were still healing. Nobuo's explanation of internal damage had made little sense to her at the time, but Izayoi now understood that his body had to heal the essential parts first, then seemed to go from the inside out. His eye was still bruised, but no longer swollen shut, his mouth had healed enough that their… activities did not hurt, but she could see faint bruising there as well. His ribs had been her biggest concern and she was glad to see that the stitches Anzu had so carefully sewn would be able to come out soon. "Izayoi?" She hummed as she rewrapped his ribs. He startled her by clasping her chin in his large palm, long fingers gentle on her cheek. "Rabbit, you smell upset."

"You almost died," she replied, keeping her eyes averted. He tsked at her, trying to pull her in for a kiss. For the first time, Izayoi pulled away. He murmured her name in confusion. "No, I… One of us will be hurt," she breathed, thinking of his face as he fought off a slew of youkai. When she found him in a muddy slick of his own blood. Thinking of her own heartbreak when she thought he had died or a moment before when he mentioned how short a human life was compared to a youkai. Her heart felt hollow.

Touga set aside his food and took both of her trembling hands in his. "Izayoi, my Little Rabbit, what is upsetting you so?"

"Someday, one of us will be hurt. You while trying to protect me, or when I die. Me if you die protecting me or… or when you grow tired of me."

"I will never tire of you."

"And thirty years from now when I am old and gray?" He flinched at the reminder, hand dropping from her face. “No, this… this isn’t fair to either one of us,” she whispered brokenly. She stood suddenly, not wanting him to see her cry. “I will return tomorrow to see how you fare.” Izayoi refused to turn at his call of her name, bolting from the hut.

The next morning was hectic in the house. Izayoi fought getting out of bed as long as possible. She had spent most of the night crying and she knew by the look Misako had given her earlier that she looked like it. She had been given tea and fruit - which she learned was for her eyes when she got ready to snack on it - and only miso broth for breakfast. “Your father wishes you to wear the lavender kimono, My Lady,” she explained as she pulled said piece from her wardrobe. It was speckled with white flowers, delicate… and one of Izayoi’s least favorite outfits.

She stood numbly while Misako dressed her, tying off her dark purple obi in an elaborate bow she could never have accomplished herself. Izayoi tried not to think. Thinking led to more upset, more pain, more tears... so she didn’t. “Isn’t that a little tight?” she muttered, wiggling her shoulders to try to increase her mobility.

“I can loosen it some, but it quite becomes your figure.” Izayoi looked sharply at her handmaid. Misako was blushing and she wouldn’t look her in the eye. Which, with anyone else, would not have surprised her. Misako was not just anyone employed in her father’s house. Something was going on. 

“Misako. Who is the visitor?” She didn’t respond. “Who is it?”

“I-I surely do not know, My Lady. Your father only said to make sure you looked presentable.”  _ Presentable… _ Izayoi swore under her breath, refusing to let Misako finish fixing her hair, leaving her room with angry steps. Or as angry as the tight kimono would allow.

Before she could arrive at her father’s study, she was firmly redirected into the sitting room she had managed to escape just the day before. To find none other than Takemaru lounging at the shoji to the veranda. “My, you look lovely, Lady Izayoi,” he said with a slight bow, opening a palm to her in greeting and invitation to take it. She did neither. “Come now, we are friendly, are we not? Our fathers have been friends for over a decade!” Izayoi could already see the beginnings of his patience waning.

Their encounters were always like this. He wanted her to be demure and doting, to show him that she adored him as much as he obviously felt she should. She had no patience for his games today. “I hope you have a pleasant visit, Takemaru-san. Good day.” Turning to leave, she swallowed a gasp when his hand slapped the door to keep it closed and keep her in. “You will move aside.” Her command hissed through clenched teeth as she contemplated how best to escape him. He was twice her size and she was bound in this constricting kimono.

“Do not dismiss me so easily, Little Izayoi,” he sneered, fingers combing through a section of her hair. She shuddered, shifting away from him to get closer to the veranda. He blocked her way there too. “I know where you were when you disappeared. An aunt’s? Ha. You were cavorting with youkai.” He obviously expected her to be surprised by his knowledge and to start begging him not to tell anyone. He was visibly confused when she simply stared at him with one of her brows raised.

“If I had been, it would be no one but  _ your _ father’s fault. Kidnapping women from their beds to sell to the highest youkai bidder? Hiring low level youkai to do his dirty work? For shame!” He stiffened at her affront to his family’s honor. “Now move aside. I have nothing more to say to you.”

“I have plenty to say to you!” he snarled. “I came to politely ask for your hand. I no longer feel like being polite. You will marry me.”

“No.”

“You  _ will _ . Or I will tell everyone that you have lain with a youkai and you will be cast out. Perhaps stoned.” His eyes were losing the little bit of rationality that had been reining in his temper. “You must choose. Marry me, become my wife as you were meant to or…” 

The sound of flesh on flesh surprised her almost as much as it had him. Izayoi stared in disbelief at his reddening cheek, then down at her throbbing hand. His eyes, wide in his face, had at least regained some form of logical thought. “L-Listen closely. I don’t care what you do. I will never marry a selfish, conceited, arrogant bastard like you.” Still thinking he had the advantage, he stepped toward her. Izayoi raised the vase she’d slipped into her grasp while his attention was diverted. “I. Will. Scream.”

“You are insane. To refuse an honorable marriage for what? A monster?!”

Izayoi couldn’t help an incredulous laugh. “Even if there were a youkai from that night, he would be far more honorable than you. Your father is the monster. And I do not believe the cherry falls far from the tree.” He practically growled at her, he was so infuriated. And she didn’t care. After all she had been through this week, she didn’t care. “Get out. Get. Out!” she screeched when he didn’t immediately budge.

“You will regret this, Izayoi. I will take my prize.”

She felt a very Touga-esque snarl come to her lips. “Try me.”

He left, but only after flashing her a glare and slamming the shoji behind him so the wood rattled afterward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>   
>  _HIDES_


	13. Masquerade Part Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izayoi faces the consequences of her defiance and Touga's patience runs out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: Aggressive father figure. Smoots! ~~FINALLY~~

The silence in the room was eating her alive. Or at least that’s what it felt like. Izayoi had never been so uncomfortable in the presence of her parents in her life. Her father was livid. Aside from the fact that she had refused Takemaru’s suit, again, she had made it clear that the story about her going to an aunt’s was not going to hold water. “You must apologize to him immediately and accept his proposal,” he said finally, breaking the heavy silence and startling her mother. The stubborn set of Izayoi’s jaw let him know she had no intention of doing anything of the sort. He ground his teeth in irritation. “Izayoi, you will do as I say or you will force my hand.”

“I will not. His beast of a father has a lot to answer for and if he thinks…”

“Enough! You will marry him.”

“I will not and cannot!” Izayoi hissed out. Her parents gave her a look that demanded she explain. Thinking wildly, she latched onto the one thing that might keep her father, and Takemaru, at bay. “I-I am already betrothed.”

Her mother sat abruptly, delicate hand fluttering at her neck.

"Don't be ridiculous, girl, you have had no other suitors," her father snapped, his eyes dared her to challenge him.

"His name is Touga. He… he is a lord."

"I have never heard of such a lord. Stop with the lies, Izayoi. It is pointless…"

"His name is Touga and he is also known as the Inu no Taisho!" She gasped at having not only interrupted her father, but to have shouted at him as well. She had never raised her voice at either of her parents before. Her mother looked faint and her father's face was becoming red. "He… he saved my life that night and he asked me to…"

“Takemaru-san said that she was kidnapped by a youkai,” her mother whispered, confused by this alternate story she hadn’t been privy to.

“He didn’t kidnap me!”

" **_Enough!_ **" her father roared, shaking with barely suppressed rage. "There will be no more talk of this monster. You will marry Takemaru-san."

"No."

"What?" he hissed, surprised by her continued refusal.

"I said _no_. I will not marry that overbearing, pride-filled, ogre. I would sooner commit sep…"

He didn't let her finish, snatching her arm and hauling her out of his study. Izayoi couldn't fight his grip, hardly keeping up with his steps as he dragged her to the end of the hall. He practically threw her into the room, snapping the doors shut and sliding the locks into place. "You will stay in here until you have come to your senses. No more galavanting around the grounds. No visits with your maid. You will remain until you realize the folly in refusing your true suitor and offer him a heartfelt apology."

"Then I will die in here!" she screamed. It wasn't until after she heard the pounding of her father's feet back down the hall, the slamming of his study door, and the faint wailing of her mother's voice that she finally broke down and allowed herself to cry. "I've ruined everything," she whimpered. Locked up here, she wouldn't be able to get off the grounds to see Touga. She wouldn't be able to say goodbye to him properly. She wouldn't be able to tell him she loved him.

She spent hours searching the tiny room for anything that might allow her to get out. Something to wiggle the locks free, a way to break down the frame of the window. But all she had was linens, a mop and bucket, and a locked chest she had never seen before tucked into a corner. She was just barely able to shove the chest far enough over to be under the window, which allowed her to peek out. At her height, even on top of the chest, she could barely reach her fingers through the window to the outside. There was no way she could do anything in her current position. Izayoi let out a sob, collapsing into the poor excuse for a bed she had made from the linens. “He will leave thinking I…” she covered her face with her hands, tears streaming down her wrists as the hopelessness overtook her.

* * *

"Three days! Three days she hasn't come."

"Yes, My Lord. We have been counting as well." Nobuo sighed. His lord was beside himself. The little human lady had told him she wasn't sure that they should pursue what, in his humble opinion, had already gone too far. His lord had let his emotions - and his youkai instincts - get the best of him and he was already partially bonded to her. His scent was all over her, making it no secret what they had been playing at when no one else was in the hut with them. But he understood that until she outright refused him, he would not be able to move on. Fortunately, he was almost completely healed from the battle, and it would only be a few more days, at most, before they could travel back to their own territory.

"You have heard nothing?" Touga asked skeptically. Nobuo shook his head. His lord stared at him, gaze narrowing. "You're lying. You swore an oath, Nobuo…" Rage filtered into his lord's eyes and he knew he was going to have to tell him.

"A human, a lesser lord, visited the day before last. The staff implied that he had been before…"

"Takemaru. The son of that human running the auctions. He has asked for Izayoi's hand before." Nobuo didn't want to be cruel, but he softly suggested that perhaps he was successful this time. "No. I… even so. She would have come to tell me. She would have come to say goodbye!" Touga was on his feet, bravely denying the limp from his still weakened leg, and charging out of the hut. Nobuo tried to stop him, begged him to think of the lady's future. "Her future should be with me. No one else."

"What about what she wants?! My Lord! Please think of her wishes too."

That did give him pause. Was he being selfish in assuming that she would do him the courtesy of coming at least one last time to say goodbye to him? Was he wrong to think she felt as strongly for him as he did for her? She had left in tears because she feared getting hurt or that he would be hurt, but hadn’t given him the chance to explain. If she agreed, he would Mate with her, bond them for life. For _his_ life. They would be together for centuries if fate allowed.

But if he didn’t hear it from her lips while looking her in the eye, he wouldn’t believe that all they had shared, the connection he felt down into his very bones, was all his imagination. “I’m going to speak with her.”

“My Lord! Sir!” Nobuo called, chasing after him as he strode - not as sturdily as he would have liked - out of the hut and toward the house where Izayoi lived. “Stop, you will be seen as an enemy. Please, let me try to…”

“No,” he snarled, stopping to pin Nobuo with a red-tinged and determined look. “I will go and find out myself. No more waiting around like an invalid!” He cracked his knuckles and rolled his neck, trying to dissipate the elevated youki because Nobuo was right about one thing. He could not go in there full tilt and expect the humans to allow him entry and sit down to tea. “You may follow if you wish, but do not interfere. Do you understand?”

Nobuo nodded stiffly and offered a brief bow of acquiescence. Touga gave a curt nod, turning on his heel and heading toward the house. 

There were few guards at the perimeter of the property but he and Nobuo were able to breeze past them without being noticed. Once they came close to the house, though, it was clear that they were prepared for some kind of event. A young guard, eyes wide in his pale face, put out his spear in shaking hands and told them to stop. He then explained that no uninvited guests were allowed entrance.

“I am here to speak with the young lady of the house,” Touga intoned, nose in the air and ears trained for any hint of her location.

“L-Lady Izayoi is ind-disposed.” Touga’s eyes returned to the puny human. Brave of him to think he would deter the Inu no Taisho in any way. He waved at another guard and mumbled something about letting the lord of the house know he was there. Fairly vibrating with impatience, and irritation that they had not been invited in, Touga waited with his arms crossed over his chest, the toes of his still healing leg tapping.

He didn’t need the verbal announcement from the guard of the lord’s arrival, his furious scent preceding him into the courtyard. “How dare you come near this place!”

Touga paused, eying him. “My Lord. We have not met. Why would you begin with such hosti-”

“You are that beast Izayoi spoke of. Saying you were betrothed! Whatever spell you have placed on her, release it. Now. She is to marry Takemaru…”

“No,” Touga interrupted in a soft, deadly voice. “There is no spell. Furthermore, _she_ will choose who she marries,” he finished. The human sputtered, rage filling his face and turning him colors Touga imagined were not healthy. "I would speak with her myself.”

The human man melted from fury into smug satisfaction. “You cannot. She has been sequestered until she can come to her senses.”

It took Touga a moment to fully comprehend what this man was telling him. “Sequestered?” The question dripped off his tongue like acid. “You have your own daughter locked away to force her to do your bidding?” He felt the stirrings of his raging youki in his gut. Still he tried to restrain it. “You will release her,” he returned the human lord’s demand. “I will speak with her. _Now_.” Her father refused a second time. Touga let out a more animal snarl, lip curling back as he felt his eyes grow hot.

"My Lord…" Touga barked a command for silence at his vassal.

"You _will_ release her to speak with me. Immediately." His voice became a growl as his body began to grow, fur erupting along his shoulders and back while his hair threatened to come loose from its high tail. He was ready to knock down a wall and find her himself.

"Touga! Touga, don't!" It took a moment for his enraged brain to understand that someone was calling his name. Someone other than Nobuo who was immobilized by his promise not to interfere warring with his need to keep his lord out of trouble. “Please! Be calm, be calm…” He could hear sniffling and then he smelled tears. Her tears.

His youkai settled some, never wanting to be the cause of her upset. “Izayoi?” he rumbled, golden eyes seeking out where her voice was coming from. He spotted a small pale hand sticking out through a narrow window, delicate fingers reaching in a bid to gain attention. “Izayoi!” He leapt over the humans barring him entrance and reached out to catch her hand. “Rabbit, what… are you locked in there?” His head snapped to pin her father with a sharp glare.

“I am… alright. Please, don’t let them think the worst of you. Show them the gentleman you can be.” She obviously swallowed back a sob for his benefit. “I couldn’t stand the thought of them hurting you because… because of me.”

“No, Little Rabbit, don’t cry,” he hushed, petting her hand since it was the only thing he could reach. He struggled with wanting to rip the wall between them down to get to her, to hold her in his arms. His youki was howling in his gut, wanting to be unchecked so it could secure his mate’s safety. To hell with all these other humans who would _dare_ keep him from her. He bit back a snarl for her benefit, not wanting to upset her any further. “I… I will do as you ask. But only because _you_ asked. If he refuses me again…”

“I know, My Love, you will get me out.”

Shot through at her soft use of the endearment, his free hand went to his chest. “In a heartbeat,” he whispered. His promise tucked against his heart, he slowly let go of her hand and turned to face her father who was just about to release the full force of his meager militia on the Inu no Taisho. “Save the lives of your men, My Lord,” he barely kept from sneering. “I will ask you one last time to sit and discuss this as civilized beings. If you will not allow me to see Izayoi, and to speak with you regarding her future, I will simply take her. I imagine it is in your best interest to agree to my… offer.”

The guards froze in their steps, glancing at each other and their lord for how they were supposed to respond. Izayoi’s father was seething, but even he could not deny the obviously suppressed strength of the youkai who spoke to his daughter so gently. And there was another with unknown ability standing by. He couldn’t afford to lose multiple men, possibly all of them if his threat was true, just to keep him from speaking with his daughter. “So be it. We will take this to the garden. You,” he pointed to one of the guards, “collect my daughter and lead her to the back garden. My… guest… and I will await you there.” He turned on his heel and strode through an archway which Touga could only assume led to the garden. He reached up to brush Izayoi’s outstretched fingers one last time before striding to catch up with his reluctant host.

The garden was nicely cared for, but a bit sparse. It would seem that this was an expense the lord of the manor begrudgingly allowed. It mattered little to him since his only goal was to get Izayoi free, into his arms, and out of this place. But he vowed that his own keep would have several gardens, full of beautiful things for Izayoi. _As long as that’s what she wants_ , he had to remind himself. Her soft voice calling him “My Love” echoed softly in his head and he set his jaw as a terrified woman scuttled to lay outdoor cushions in the grass for them, his unwilling host taking his seat.

He waited until the guard sent to retrieve her brought Izayoi from the house before he too sat. Touga was furious to notice that she smelled as though she had not eaten for some time and that she did not appear to have been allowed to bathe regularly. He could see that the kimono she wore was disheveled, despite her efforts to adjust it, and it was obvious that she had been wearing it several days. “Izayoi, you may sit beside me,” her father spoke with only barely hidden fury. She hesitated, her dark eyes locking with golden and showing her desire to go to him instead. “Izayoi.”

“Y-Yes, Father,” she whispered. Touga gulped down rage that his fierce Little Rabbit had been reduced to this. This whisper-soft voice, the wilted look about her, the change in her eyes…

“I would ask for the lady’s hand,” the Inu no Taisho spoke without preamble. He saw no point in prolonging this already uncomfortable discussion with false pleasantries and platitudes. “I have offered to the lady herself, but I understand it is customary to ask for permission from her family to wed.” While a bit put out by the lack of small talk, her father seemed to appreciate Touga’s acknowledgement of his “power” in this situation.

“You are not who I would wish to give my daughter to. There is no alliance to be made, no… gain. You are unknown to me.” The human lord lifted his chin in the air as if to make his point that he was in control. “You are a youkai. What need of a human woman have you?”

“I need only her for herself.” The energy in the air shifted slightly and Touga glanced around. He could hear the change in their breathing. Was it so shocking that he would not seek some other benefit? “She is strong, intelligent, healthy.” He locked eyes with Izayoi, silently apologizing for speaking of her like livestock. Her dark eyes were wide, but he could tell that she understood. “She will bear a strong child.”

“But it would be a half-breed,” her father argued. “Why not choose another youkai. Surely a youkai female would be more suited to your… appetites.” Touga felt a snarl try to take hold of his upper lip but was just barely able to stop it before it translated into the aggressive expression it was meant to.

“My appetites are of no concern to you, My Lord,” he rumbled. “All you need know is that I have chosen this woman to be my Mate.”

Izayoi gasped softly, a hand covering her mouth as tears sat in her eyes. She dared not speak for fear that her father would double down on his insistence that she marry Takemaru if he knew how desperately she wanted to run to Touga and have him hold her in his arms. “There is the matter of a bride price. As the only daughter of this territory with sizeable holdings, it will not be… small.” She wanted to snarl at her father. What ridiculousness was that?! He was a lesser lord, hardly worth much. “It might be outside your means.”

“My Lord is not destitute.” All eyes flipped to Nobuo, standing stoically aside. Izayoi saw the burning in his gaze directed at her father for him to presume so ill of his lord. He was a good man and a good friend. One that she was glad to count as one of her own. “Name your price, My Lord.”

Touga growled something at Nobuo, who bowed and backed off. Izayoi gathered that it must have been a reprimand for stepping in when not asked to do so. “I am prepared to hear you, My Lord.” Izayoi’s heart staggered as her father named an outrageous price. She knew enough to know she was not “worth” that as a bride. Touga seemed to see what her father was playing at, trying to intimidate him off with demands he thought he couldn’t meet. “I see.” While the human man thought he was winning, he stared in boiling silence for a moment. He studied Izayoi as though evaluating if she was worth that much to him. In reality, he was calculating how quickly he would need to move to collect her and leave without hurting her.

“If it is too high a price…” Touga interrupted him with an agreement to the terms, startling him into silence for a moment. Izayoi blinked at him before looking at her father in hopes that he would just agree and be done with all of the theatrics. “Surely that does not cover the cost of a wedding ceremony as well…”

The Inu no Taisho breathed to keep his calm while making brief eye contact with his vassal. “This one will provide the needed amount. Do not play games, it is beneath you.” Which, surprisingly, stopped the discussion on the price. Nobuo produced a pouch that contained at least three quarters of the amount required and explained that the rest would be given at a later time. “I would speak with the lady now. Alone.”

Her father turned into a ruffled rooster at the implication that his unmarried daughter would be alone with a man, even if he were technically her betrothed. “Father, we will remain in the garden for now,” she murmured. He huffed and grumbled, trying to come up with a reason to refuse, but with a chaperone in the still present Nobuo and one of his guards, and the open environment of the garden, he couldn’t really argue. “Thank you,” she said through clenched teeth when he finally agreed and turned to leave. She waited but a moment before flying through the space between them and colliding with Touga’s chest, his open arms catching her and cradling her to him as his nose took her scent in over and over. The softest of greeting whimpers echoed in his throat as he nuzzled her hair. “Touga, Touga,” she sobbed.

“I know, My Rabbit, I’ve got you.” Her small hands clung to the front of his robes, desperate for an anchor for her emotions. He continued to pet her hair and softly murmur in her ear until she calmed enough to look up at him with red-rimmed eyes. “Did he hurt you? I can tell you have not eaten,” he growled, looking up at the guard who had the decency to look a bit sheepish.

“I am… unhurt.” He didn’t like that hesitation one bit, but he just wanted to know that she was alright. “You came for me,” she sighed.

“Of course. Of course I did,” he murmured, using his thumbs to wipe the remaining tears and a bit of dirt from her cheeks. “You didn’t come to tell me goodbye and…”

“I’m sorry I ran out…”

“No, I…” The pair shared a laugh at talking over one another. “When you hadn’t come, I knew something had to be wrong.” She sucked in a breath, holding in a sob, and nodded. He gathered her in close once more, running his fingers through her hair until she stopped sniffling. “Now… I thought you weren’t interested in marrying me and now I hear that we are betrothed?” His teasing chuckle turned into a huff as Izayoi lightly elbowed him in the stomach. Then immediately apologized and wanted to check if she had reopened his injuries. “No, Rabbit, that is all healed.”

“But you were limping!”

Touga winced. “You noticed that?” She scowled at him. “The leg is taking a mite longer.” He looked her over again, checking for any bruising or scent of old blood. “Are you sure you’re unhurt? Should we leave right now? I’ll take you from this place…”

She pressed a gentling hand to his cheek. “No. We should… follow custom. And you have nowhere to take me! Vagabond!” she teased. They had spoken of how the keep in his territory was still unfinished, though soon it would be at least habitable in some parts. It might be another several years before it would be completely finished. Touga chuckled, glad to see the spark he knew and loved back in the eyes of the woman he so adored. “Touga-sama…”

“Don’t call me that…”

“Yes. What is it you want me to call you?”

“Mate,” he growled, kissing her in spite of their audience and intentionally marking everywhere he could reach with his scent. His tongue swept hers, his lips almost bruising in their force. He wanted it known that this woman was his and that he was hers. Izayoi whimpered against him, gasping when he finally released her. “But for now Touga is sufficient.”

* * *

After the kiss in the garden, Izayoi had been taken to her own room where she was finally able to bathe, but where the only one allowed near her was Misako. There were strict orders that she was not to leave her room and that the youkai suitor was not allowed into the house without her father’s strict permission. Izayoi had no intention of listening to any of that. Her maid, grateful that her lady had protected her from a fate she likely wouldn’t have survived, was happy to develop a plan to sneak her mistress out of the house so she could see her inuyoukai soon-to-be husband. “Thank you, thank you…”

“Hush, My Lady, and begone!” Misako grinned. “You will run out of time if you do not hurry!” Izayoi squeezed her hand one last time before slipping through the servant door and through the back garden gate. There was little light without the moon, so her dark cloak hid her as she moved along the low lying bushes and into the forest. The guards were more focused on changing their shift and didn’t notice the slight figure darting into the night.

She kept herself low so as not to alert any possible patrols and made her way to the cabin. One wouldn’t know it was occupied from the outside, boards over the doors and windows blocking the cheery firelight she knew she would find inside. “You are lucky that I heard you coming and that human ears are so weak, Little Rabbit.” He muffled her reactive scream with his hand, then twirled her into his arms so he could kiss her breathless. “Izayoi, what are you doing here?” he asked between hot presses of his lips to hers. “You should not risk…”

“Do be quiet, Touga,” she laughed, tugging at his suikan and dragging him toward the hut. “Are they here?” she asked, trying to hide her hopefulness. He shook his head. “Oh.” Izayoi grinned a little shyly, pulling him into another kiss. They entered the hut, Touga spinning to press her into the wall, lifting her leg and oh so slowly grinding his hips into hers. “Oh!” she sighed. “My Love.”

“Yes,” he hissed. “My Little Rabbit, it seems that we continually find ourselves in a position we ought not be in when we are not, by your rules, bound.” His tone was teasing, but his body was not anymore. She could feel the hot ridge of him through their clothing, pressing against where she wanted him most.

Izayoi’s understanding was limited to their previous encounters and the limited knowledge she had gained from household staff over time. They never meant for her to hear any of it, but she was very good at hiding in places they wouldn’t think to look for her. Some of the stories had been terrifying, turning her away from the idea of intimacy entirely. Some had been bittersweet or had left her feeling bereft. There was a chance for the “lower classes” to find love in a way she had never thought available to her before now. She had been somewhat resigned to, though still furious about, the idea that she was chattel. She was a tool for her father to use in trade for the things he wanted. But now…

“What if we are bound by _your_ rules?” she whispered against his ear, nibbling the slightly elongated pinna and making him groan. “Then would it be acceptable for us to be in this position?” Touga rumbled something she didn’t understand before he pushed back from her. “T-Touga?”

“Is this… a game to you, Izayoi?”

“What? No. Why would you think that?”

Touga snarled, pacing, his leg still giving him a little trouble when he pivoted. “Your family would be furious that you are here right now.”

“D-Do you not want me to be here?” she whispered brokenly. She had been so sure that they were on the same page, that he wanted her as much and as desperately as she wanted him. “I should not have come…” Izayoi turned to leave, yanking her cloak over her shoulders. She sucked in a harsh breath when large hands caught her elbows, a heavy head falling against the back of her neck.

“No, Rabbit. I did not mean that. I am just… I am trying to be the gentleman your father expects.” He shifted, head lifting to allow him to trail his nose against the nape of her neck. His touch was gentle, but she could feel the restraint he was hardly keeping hold of. Izayoi let out a shaking breath. “I do want you here. Given the chance, I would take you from that place and we would be mated before sunrise.”

“You don’t need to take me anywhere,” she whispered. “And if we will be mated anyway, does it matter if it is before or after the wedding?” Touga slowly turned her to face him, golden eyes studying her. Izayoi carefully reached up to trace the stripe on his cheek, up toward his high ponytail. She looped a section of his long silver hair around her finger and lightly tugged.

“You wish to be mine, Little Rabbit?” She smiled. “And you wish for me to be yours, for the rest of our lives?”

“That could be a very long time, couldn’t it?” she asked, twirling the cord of hair through her fingers. He nodded slowly. “I think I could get used to that.” A sly grin lifted his lips.

“I thought you were worried I would get tired of you.”

“Well, if we’re bound together, then you’re stuck with me, aren’t you?” Touga chuckled, scooping her up and smiling as she giggled.

The inuyoukai lord settled her onto the futon he had been using in his convalescence. He pulled off her cloak and his own suikan, setting them aside. Izayoi bit her lip nervously, watching him in the shifting light of the fire. “You are sure that this is what you want? That you do not wish to wait until after your marriage ceremony?”

“Touga, stop asking questions you already know the answer to.” He smirked, peeling the rest of his clothes from his frame. Izayoi was in awe as the glow of the firelight put the lines of his body in relief. He appeared even more ethereal than a youkai, a god perhaps. Yet she never paused to worry that she was not worthy of him. He was hers and she would be his. It was as it was meant to be. Some deep part of her knew it.

He helped her out of her simple yukata and sucked in a breath at how pearlescent her skin looked in the soft light from the fire. He smoothed his fingers down her ribs, her waist, and over her hips as he pulled the fabric from her body. Touga murmured compliments as he explored her with careful touches, fingertips finding the dips behind her knees and the curves of her calves. He crawled back up her frame as he moved to kiss her, tasting the desire on her lips. Her slim fingers slid up his shoulders, tracing the markings she found there and tugging his hair to pull him in closer. Touga growled at her show of confidence, glad to have his Rabbit back. “You are delicious, My Love,” he rasped, tongue tracing the line of her jaw, down her throat and across her collarbones. He found the peaks of her breasts pebbled with her arousal, the scent of it on the air causing his nostrils to flare and his pupils to dilate with his own matching want. “Izayoi,” he rumbled, nipping one breast. She gasped at the feel of his teeth against the delicate flesh, fingernails digging into his nape.

“Touga!”

“Yes,” he returned. “Anything you want, Rabbit?” he questioned her with a smirk, licking across one nipple before taking it into his mouth to toy with. Izayoi sighed and whimpered, hips moving restlessly below him and begging for something he wasn’t sure she was entirely ready for, no matter what she told him. The daiyoukai grinned and slipped down the long line of her body to nuzzle her thigh, nipping and kissing the soft skin there. It was pale, clearly never seeing the sun, and he relished the fact that he had been given permission to see something no other ever had. “My Mate,” he purred, nose finding the very center of her being and taking a long sniff. He wanted to memorize this scent, the core of her, open and hot, waiting for his touch.

“Am I really?” she gasped out above him. “You said that but…” She froze at the feel of his lips nibbling where she had barely ever touched herself. “Oh!”

“Yes, Little Rabbit. You are my True Mate.” His hot breath against her center made her arch off the futon. “I have known it from the night we met.” Then he was gently touching her, spreading her open and finally taking a careful taste. His tongue was soft at first, clearly not wanting to scare her with too much too quickly. But Izayoi found that it was not enough. 

“Ungh. Why… Why did you not tell me before?” She was distracted from asking any more questions for the moment when he delved more fully into her heat, tasting her slick on his tongue, delighting in the roundness of her scent and flavor. His Mate was everything he had imagined and more. And they were only just beginning.

Touga took her to a place beyond anything she had ever dreamed of, lights dancing in her vision when she felt lightning down her spine. Izayoi bowed off the bedding, held in place only by her lover’s strong arms wrapped around her thighs to keep her there. “Ah, My Love,” he murmured, licking his lips with a devilish smirk on them, prowling up her body and leaving tiny nips as her mind returned from another plane of existence. “You sing beautifully,” he teased, grinning while leaning in to kiss her softly. 

Izayoi could faintly taste herself on his tongue and she wasn’t sure how she felt about it, but was quickly distracted by the feel of his uncovered length pressing against her. It was very different from when they had been clothed earlier, or any other time before. It was hot and hard, the weight of it a little intimidating. She knew enough to know how they were supposed to fit together, but there was a tiny part of her that feared the possible pain associated. 

“Izayoi, look at me,” he breathed, palming her cheek to make sure she complied. “If you are frightened, we need not go any further.”

“No it’s not… I’m not afraid.” He gave her a look, pointing to his nose. “I am a bit.”

“Then we can simply touch,” he murmured, lowering his nose to press into the crook of her neck, tongue slipping out now and again as he gently rolled his hips against hers without making any move to enter her. Izayoi lifted one leg aside to feel him slide against her folds, brushing where she was still so sensitive from his mouth. “Rabbit…” he whined.

“I just… it feels good.” He rumbled an agreement, pressing down a little more firmly.

Touga was trying to control himself, he really was, but the feel and scent of her covering his cock without actually feeling the full heat of her was stirring his beast. He wanted to mark her, to join with her… to breed her. But she wasn’t ready for that yet. “Izayoi,” he pleaded when she slid her other leg out from under him so that he was fully cradled by her thighs. “Please, My Love, you are tempting me too much.”

“I’m not afraid anymore,” she whispered, pressing her heels into the futon so she could roll against him in return. Her scent told him she was telling the truth this time. He hissed out a curse, the tip of his cock catching against her clit dragging a gasp from her lungs. “Please, Touga. I want you.”

“Anything for you, Izayoi.”

Touga let out a shuddering breath, slowly slipping into her opening and pressing into her tight passage. He felt her holding her breath, leaning down to whisper in her ear. He told her to breathe, to just kiss him. She followed his words, taking his lips and focusing her attention on the silken texture of their lips pressing against each other and their tongues moving together. It took a moment for Izayoi to realize that he could go no further. There was pressure, a bit of discomfort, but she did not feel pain to the level she had heard could happen. “Touga,” she breathed. “I…”

“I know, I feel it too.” He growled something she couldn’t understand, shifting his arms to brace himself above her. She got a chance to see the full span of his frame up close, staring at the stripes at his shoulders, his cheeks, at the wrists. He was muscled, but more wiry than she had thought for all the strength he possessed. “Hm, what?” he grunted as he started moving, slowly, carefully. She ran her fingers against his markings and he grinned. “Like those?”

“They are part of you, of course I like them.”

“This is also a part of me. Does that mean you like it too?” he whispered in her ear, pointedly letting his hips retreat and return so she felt the full length of him fill her. Izayoi whimpered, clinging to his biceps with nails digging into his skin. Touga couldn’t help smirking and repeating the action when it was clear she had liked it very much. He was able to slowly build up his pace until she was crying out his name, legs wrapped around his thighs to keep from moving up the futon. “Little Rabbit, I need for you to let go,” he begged her from between gritted teeth. He was so close, but couldn’t bear the thought of her being left behind. “Cum with me,” he breathed against her nipple before taking it between his lips and suckling hard. She stiffened against him, her spine bowing and going rigid. He felt her tighten around him and it was all he could do not to bite her right then. He released her breast so he could press his fangs to her collar bone instead, sinking into her with both teeth and cock as he finally allowed himself to follow her into bliss.

There was a tightness around his heart for a moment, then it released and sparks skipped through all his nerves. Touga wasn’t sure what was happening until he was able to peel his eyes open and see the way his youki danced along his skin and into Izayoi. She glowed for a moment, almost too bright to look at, then the light faded and she let out a soft sigh. “Was that…”

Touga let out a relieved breath. “Yes. We are bound. Forever.” The brilliant smile that met his words forced a similar smile onto his own lips. “You are trapped, Little Rabbit.”

Izayoi giggled at him. “I don’t mind, if it’s you.” 

* * *

Laying in one another’s arms, the exhaustion from managing their emotions all day in front of a group of stupid human nobles draining them both, Touga and Izayoi yawned almost in unison. There had been a smaller group than would have been present had she been marrying another human, but any more than what they were subjected to would have likely been too much. She knew that the gathering had nowhere near required the amount her father had demanded from Touga, but her Mate insisted that if it meant that he got her without the additional stress of having to steal her away, it was worth it to him.

The gowns alone had been more than Izayoi had been willing to put up with, but knowing that it was at Touga’s expense forced her to swallow her pride and her anger with her father and agree to the changes between events. Misako had commented that she needed to smile a little more or they would all think she was being forced to marry the inuyoukai when that was far from the truth. Seeing the look on his face when she was escorted to meet him for the ceremony had been worth it, she supposed, and how he struggled to keep from showing her all his affection in public during the gathering was a treat. Too bad they weren’t acting on all that built up tension from the small touches throughout the day.

Touga sighed heavily, ruffling Izayoi’s hair in the dark of their room. While most couples would have been finally engaging in their marital activities, they were too tired. “Are you sure you are alright?” he murmured against the crown of her head. “You weren’t able to eat a thing at dinner,” he reminded her, obvious concern in his tone. Izayoi let out a breath, gently pushing back from her Mate, her husband. She traced a line down the middle of his chest with her finger, delighting in the faint shiver that ran through him despite how tired they both were. “Izayoi,” he warned her.

Izayoi knew that distracting him from his line of questioning would only work for so long before he would notice her tactics and press her for the information he wanted, regardless of what she did. “I will be alright,” she said.

“But you are not right now.” His dark brows lowered over golden eyes in consternation.

Izayoi sighed softly. “My Love. I… I believe that I am with child,” she finally whispered. The frown on his face expanded as his eyes widened and his mouth dropped open in a gasp. His brows rose under his bangs and she waited for him to say something… anything.

“You are… you are whelped?” he asked breathlessly.

She hesitated, unsure if he was pleased or upset. “I think so, yes. It has been since before we mated that my courses came.”

Izayoi was unprepared for, but relieved to see, the wide grin that split his face. His large hands rose to cradle her cheeks and he pressed his nose to hers, a happy growl in his chest. “Little Rabbit, truly?” he murmured. She nodded, tears coming to her eyes and a smile wobbling on her lips. His joy was infectious, but she was also tired and not in full control of her own emotions. She let out a sob. “Izayoi, why are you crying?”

“I was worried you would be upset,” she wailed into his chest, clinging to the open edges of his sleeping yukata. She felt more than heard his soft chuckle and then the comforting rumble that replaced it. He engulfed her in his embrace, tucking her head under his chin and continuing to softly purr for her benefit.

“I am far from upset, My Love,” he whispered. “I am proud that our union has born fruit so soon. It is a good sign.” She gave him a quizzical look. Touga shook his head. “It is an old youkai superstition. A newly bonded pair that is able to produce offspring within a year of their mating is a True-Bonded pair. Their souls were destined for one another. To find one another amongst all the others… it is a gift.”

Izayoi squeezed him a little tighter. “I like that.”

Touga smiled. He let out a content sigh and grinned. “Now what should we name our stubborn daughter?”

Izayoi laughed. “No, we’re having a stubborn son. With his father’s hair and eyes and his mother’s love of adventure.”

“He’ll give you gray hairs too soon,” he teased.

“Oh? You’ve already got them all,” she huffed. Touga couldn’t help the chortle that bubbled out of him. “Touga?” He hummed to let her know he was listening. “Will… will there be problems since our child will be part youkai and part human?”

He sighed. “Hanyou,” he supplied. “I will make sure that our child is protected, Izayoi. You have my word.”

“I know you will.” She breathed him in and let it out with a puff against his chest. “Now… about his strong name…” 

Touga laughed heartily. He would play her game. The two remained up far longer than they planned to toss names back and forth, laughing and whispering together. Eventually Izayoi could no longer keep her eyes open and Touga hummed to send her off to sleep. He smiled to himself, the lethargy of happiness and feeling truly complete washing over him. Never would he have anticipated that choosing to help his vassal rescue his mate a few months ago would lead to him finding this. His entire world in his arms and growing their pup inside her. “Thank you,” he whispered to whatever powers might be listening. _I will treasure this gift always._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well thank you all for joining me on this tangent into the lives of Touga and Izayoi before they became the loving ~~and slightly conniving~~ parents of our beloved Inu and supportive in-laws to our poor Kagome. I hope you enjoyed meeting them as much as I did writing them!


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A return to present time. Catching up with friends, catching uninvited guests, and catching unexpected scents.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No content warnings this go around.  
> Art of Ryusei by the wonderful [@nartista-digital](https://nartista-digital.tumblr.com) added to the chapter!

“So now she can finally leave our quarters.” Miroku’s grin was huge and he looked ready to vibrate with the excitement of being able to finally tell his best friend the truth.

Inuyasha was a bit stunned, to say the least. “Work fast, don’t you?” Kagome elbowed him lightly in the ribs. “I mean... Congratulations.”

“Thank you, my friend,” Miroku beamed. He had one arm around Sango’s waist, barely refraining from putting the open hand on her distinctly present belly. Much more present than that of his wife, who could still conceal the roundness of her growing middle with the layers of kimono appropriate for the cooling weather. Inuyasha guessed that Sango was a bit further along than Kagome. He had caught a faint scent on the slayer when she first arrived, but it had taken Kagome’s pregnancy for him to understand _what_ the scent was.

"That's very exciting!" Kagome said with a bright smile. Sango's returning smile was a little more tentative. She was still getting used to life in the keep and had been staying in their quarters a lot. Of course, now knowing her condition, that made more sense. Kagome understood the lack of desire to see anyone when you didn't feel all that well. "We can share stories of our aches and pains that our husbands don't feel like listening to." Inuyasha huffed that he had been a very good listener up to now, thank you very much. Kagome and Sango just shared a secretive smile.

Inuyasha’s eyes narrowed, his ears rotating forward and his nose twitching. The others stared at his off change in behavior. “You got more than one in there.”

“E-Excuse me?” Sango whispered. The inuhanyou blinked before repeating his statement. “More than one… baby?” There was a sudden understanding in Sango’s face and she put a hand to her mouth. “I… Of course.” Kagome noted she looked a little pale and nudged Inuyasha to get her a chair. “That makes sense. I just thought I was putting on too much weight,” she whispered as Kagome knelt in front of her, patting her hands. Miroku stood behind her in stunned silence, his mouth gaping open and closed like a fish. He yelped when Inuyasha finally pushed his shoulder.

“Twins are…”

“Keh. Don’t even go there with that shit.”

“Inuyasha, language.”

“What? I’m not going to let them get caught up in all that superstition about twins being bad luck. You get two in one go, that’s amazing.” And he was being genuine. He really meant it.

Miroku took a deep breath before putting his hand on Sango’s shoulder. “Yes. You are right, my friend. It is a new era, is it not? If humans and youkai can live together in peace as we do here, there is no reason to assume that bearing twins is any ill omen. We are fortunate.” Sango snapped out of her shock and finally grinned a little weakly.

“My father would be very proud. Twins have been common in his family in the past.”

“You see! It’s great news!” Inuyasha reaffirmed, nodding his head resolutely.

Still a bit in shock from the news, Kagome and Inuyasha walked the pair back to their quarters to make sure they made it safely. Once they were behind their closed door, Kagome spun on her mate and poked a finger in his chest, backing him down the way they had come as he scrambled back from her ire. “You could have waited to tell them in a more private setting, or maybe been more gentle.”

They came to a stop and he pressed his hands against her shoulders to keep her at bay. He took a moment to process everything before Inuyasha raised an eyebrow at his feisty little wife, smirking. “You’re just upset I didn’t tell you that I noticed it first.”

Kagome sputtered in indignation but couldn’t entirely refute the claim. He wasn’t wrong… Per se. “A-Anyway, you gave Sango-san quite the shock.”

“Keh. She’s a warrior. She’s dealt with far worse.” Kagome blinked a moment, then rolled her eyes at him and turned to walk down the hallway. “Oi, where are you going?”

“Going outside to breathe. All this hot air is stifling.”

Inuyasha paused for a moment. It was almost chilly in the hallway… “Hey! I am not… Come back here woman!” he called, chasing her down the hallway with their intermittent laughter echoing off the stones.

* * *

  
  


This was not the day she had planned. Of course, nothing had been going according to _plan_ lately. Certainly not her father's plans. He was dead set on her turning Inuyasha's head away from his wife… his mate. She had tried to explain to him that it was impossible, but he didn't want to hear a word of it. It had been an embarrassing enough lesson for her to learn, and difficult to let go of the dream she had been banking on for months. Gain the attention of the son of the Inu no Taisho, get him to fall in love with her, and then she would finally have a chance at the freedom she so craved.

Yet here she was, sitting in a carriage with her father staring her down in his usual angry silence. She kept her eyes averted to keep from angering him further. Kikyou knew better than to argue with him, she also knew he would see the defiance in her eyes if she even looked his way. "You will succeed this time, or you will not return." Kikyou's lungs froze in their movement. Looking up at him might insight his wrath, so she kept staring at the seat beside her, but it was difficult not to try and see how seriously he meant it. Though she could not recall her father ever having told a joke before.

Slowly, she let out her breath and took another. "Yes, Chichi-ue," she murmured.

"No more excuses. Your sister is not positioned to catch such a valuable asset. We can ill afford another mistake such as this. You let him slip through your fingers…”

“Yes, Chichi-ue,” she dared to interrupt, if only because hearing that she had _lost_ Inuyasha, no matter that it was through no fault of her own, was more painful than what her father might do or say in this moment. He knew better than to strike her just before he intended to leave her at the doorstep of the very man she was supposed to be seducing away from his wife. “I will not fail again,” she hurried to placate him. He only grunted in response.

As soon as they approached the main gates, he rushed her out of the carriage and urged the driver off. He did not wish to be stopped for leaving an unaccompanied woman on her own. Kikyou sighed, brushing off her skirt and lifting her head high as she stepped up to the guard. It was not the annoying kitsune boy who was usually at this post - he would have known she was not permitted - so Kikyou was able to sweet talk her way in. Unaccustomed to a highborn lady arriving at the gate and not riding all the way in, the poor guard wasn’t quite sure what to do with her. “My Lady I…”

“Is something wrong?” a smooth voice intoned, catching the guard’s attention. There was the faintest frown on his brow before it faded and he cleared his throat, explaining who she was and that her intention was to visit the Inu no Taisho’s family. Kikyou fought the urge to turn her head and acknowledge the other man, her status being such that she was not obligated and she had an image to uphold. “I see. Milady… Kikyou, was it?”

Finally, since he was addressing her directly, Kikyou turned her eyes toward the voice that reminded her of deep water rushing over rocks. She was more than a bit stunned to be met with the sight of a tall man with tanned skin and an array of scales ranging from blue to green to turquoise along his hairline and neck. His ears were slightly pointed and he had notable fangs when he gave her a slight smile before bowing. His hands folded against his knees as he bowed, she could see the more faint pattern of scales along the delicate outside bones of his wrists. She had never seen anything like him in her life. “Yes and you… I have not seen you before.”

His hair, black with a hint of blue in the light of the sun, bobbed as he nodded at her. “I am most often engaged inside the keep.” He grinned a little. She noted that, while mostly human in appearance, his nose was slightly flattened and his nostrils were more narrow. “I am Ryusei, Milady, and I would be most honored to be of assistance to you.”

“I… Thank you.” She offered the slightest nod of her head in response to acknowledge his offer. “I was meant to see Lord Inuyasha and his lady.”

Kikyou knew he saw right through her lie as soon as she allowed their eyes to meet. His were piercingly green, so much so that it stole her breath in surprise. She instinctively took a step back out of fear that he would call her out in that moment. “I see. Do allow me to escort you then,” he intoned, offering his elbow to her. Kikyou hesitated a long moment. Accept his offer and give herself more time to get further into the keep and plan her next steps from there? Or turn tail and run for fear that he would take her directly to the Inu no Taisho and expose her lie? Ultimately, she was doomed either way. With a long sigh and an overly polite smile, Kikyou took the arm of the strange man with the soothing voice.

“My lady, do tell me about what brought you here today.”

“It is not your business, sir,” she squeaked out after a moment. Ryusei chuckled lightly. While, in theory, she was correct, he knew that she was there under false pretenses. He had come to greatly admire, respect, and care for the family of this keep who had been so quick to shelter his own family. He would never allow someone to do them harm if he had the means to prevent it. However, he sensed that this woman did not really intend harm... she was desperate. "You are employed here?"

"Hm. Not exactly. I do things to occupy myself, but I am not obligated to this house in that way," he replied.

"I do not appreciate your cryptic speech," she snipped out, some of the polite veneer peeling away. He smirked to himself as he led her across the main courtyard and into the more public gardens. The weather was a bit cooler and he noticed she was not exactly dressed for the weather. In fact, Kikyou did not look like she'd been allowed to dress appropriately for visiting either. He had seen her in passing before, from the top of a wall or at the end of a hallway as she was led into the great hall for one of the many gatherings for the upper classes. She was always impeccably dressed and with her hair perfectly done.

The woman at his side was borderline disheveled. Her hair was loose aside from a tie keeping it away from her eyes and her outfit looked like the kind most of the noble ladies wore around the home when not meeting with guests. Still well made and nicely dyed, but plainer. He also noted it was not as heavy as most would wear outside at this time of year and he faintly raised his own body temperature to compensate as they strolled the footpaths.

"My family sought sanctuary here in the home of the Inu no Taisho when my father was denounced by his people." Her dark eyes lifted to his in question even as she unconsciously leaned a little close to soak in his warmth. Ryusei explained how he and his mother had been in hiding on the dragon lands for years because his father knew how his family, and the other dragon youkai of his territory, would react to a dragon of his standing fathering a hanyou. "But my sister's life was what drew the attention of the elders."

"You have a sister?" she breathed in awe.

He nodded. "Only a few months old now. But she is destined to be very powerful, it seems. Her energy was notable even in the womb and my father's elder brother, the king, found out she and my mother existed. Then, that my father had been hiding me as well for twenty five years."

“That is a very long time to keep a secret from someone.” Kikyou pulled him up short after a moment of thought. “I too have a younger sister. Her name is Kaede and she is several years my junior.” She hung her head a moment in thought. Ryusei watched in fascination as she deliberated. He had hoped that by being honest about his own family, that she might tell him something about hers. Perhaps tell him why she seemed to have been nearly thrown from a moving carriage at the gates of a place she knew full well she was no longer welcome. “My… my sister will not have the opportunities that most young ladies of our station are given.”

Her voice so soft that he almost couldn’t hear her, Ryusei too leaned down to listen. She spoke of a young girl who was intelligent and sharp tongued, who spoke her mind against all the wishes of her parents. Particularly her father. With the standards set by a harsh father and a wispy mother to guide her, young Kaede was bound to be a spinster that her family could ill afford. No nobleman in his right mind would accept a betrothal to such a whip-tongued lady. And so it had been left up to Kikyou to balance out her sister’s “failings,” and allow for them to afford a better tutor, by marrying very well and paving the way for Kaede. But Kikyou too had “failed.” Her most promising suitor, _the_ most promising suitor in the territory, had found his true mate and there was no feasible means to split them apart.

“You did not fail, My Lady,” he murmured to her, startling her a little. Kikyou’s eyes were damp, but she did not cry. Ryusei got the feeling she did not allow herself such weakness and it was only in this very dire moment that she felt so untethered as to even hint at tears. “Lord Inuyasha and Lady Kagome were meant for one another, there is nothing that you could have done to stop the inevitable. How much worse it could have been if you had already married!” he said with a slight scoff. Kikyou’s face darkened in irritation and he stumbled a moment with what to say to smooth her ruffled feathers. “I only mean that it would have been much more painful for all of you because Lord Inuyasha would not have been able to deny his instincts, no matter how hard he tried."

She stared at him in wonder for a moment. “I… I was unaware that those instincts were so strong for Inuyoukai.”

“Hm. For most youkai.”

The pair stared at one another for a long moment before Ryusei’s head popped up and his nostrils flared slightly. “Come, we must go.”

“Wh…”

“Now, milady!” he breathed, tucking her against his side again and rushing her to a back entrance of the keep that she was completely unaware of. This place was far bigger and more complex than she had realized. “I think it is best if the young lord and his lady did not see you at this time,” he explained when they were inside, though he continued to step quickly, making it a little difficult for her to keep up. Kikyou gasped when he swung her around a corner into a dark hallway. Her scent rose in fear. “It is alright milady, only dark. I have not lit the lamps here.” His comment distracted her from the happy laughter she could hear in the garden.

“L-Lit the lamps? I thought you did not work here!” she hissed.

“I don’t. I simply help the good family here with my talents as it is no skin off my back to do so.” He was able to see the way her eyes widened in astonishment as the tiniest of flames appeared between his fingertips a bit in front of her nose. The flame was reflected in her dark eyes and he found himself fascinated by the childlike wonder he saw there. Another vulnerable moment she likely would never have allowed in front of anyone unless raw as she was right now. “It keeps me busy and out of my mother’s hair while she cares for my sister. And my father.” His eyes turned down and the flame between his fingers sputtered out.

“He is unwell?” Kikyou asked in a soft voice, the dark seeming to require a hushed tone.

“He was severely injured when the others discovered our existence. They wished to destroy me, my mother. I am a threat to the order of succession to the throne. My sister has unknown potential power.”

He felt the hesitation in her but waited for her to formulate her question. “Even… Even as hanyou? You are still eligible for the throne there?”

“Yes. I do not want it. They would sooner kill me, given the chance, but I never wanted it anyway.” Ryusei sighed and allowed another slightly brighter flame to appear. “I think, my dear lady, that you are in need of somewhere to stay. Sanctuary.” Her eyes dropped to the stone floor beneath their feet. “I cannot imagine that the Inu no Taisho’s family would turn you away if they knew the truth of your circumstances, but I understand your reluctance to tell them.” She said nothing, but in her silence was agreement. “I know of a small part of this wing that is incomplete only in that there are no furnishings of any kind. I could get you a futon and blankets, enough wood for a small stove to keep you warm…”

“Why?” Ryusei blinked at her bowed head. “Why would you help me?”

He mused for a long moment, nostrils flaring faintly in thought. “If no one had opened their hearts to us when we were running for our lives, my mother and sister would be dead. My father would not be healing, albeit slowly, from serious injuries inflicted by his own brother. We would not be together.”

Kikyou’s face rose at the passion in his voice. His gratitude was palpable. But so too was it visible in the faint glow of his skin as he radiated warmth. “Ryusei-san, I…”

He smiled softly, touching her hand. “We all have vulnerable moments. It is alright to ask for help when we need it.” Slowly, Kikyou smiled and finally nodded. “Right. Let’s get you tucked away. I will need to gather those things for you.”

Ryusei turned to lead her down the hallway, but froze at the touch of her small cool hand on his much warmer wrist. “Thank you, Ryusei-san.” He gave her a slightly fangy grin.

“Of course, Milady.”

* * *

Inuyasha couldn’t help staring at his brother out of the corner of his eye. There was something off about him that he couldn’t entirely place. “Cease this infantile behavior and ask whatever it is you must of this one. You are irritating.” A smirk split Inuyasha’s lips as he turned to look at the elder inuyoukai who was almost visibly squirming in discomfort. _My gods, was that a blush just now?_ His smile became almost gleeful. Part of Inuyasha was honestly concerned, the other was delighted by the prospect of making his brother actually display his emotions for once.

“Your scent. Something’s different.” Sesshoumaru twitched.

They had been ordered to go patrol the wagon road from the village outside the keep to the neighboring village immediately. No time to address anything else before they were sent out the door. Something about lesser youkai encroaching on the road and not respecting the Inu no Taisho’s law of not harassing humans. Kagome was - per his request - confined within the walls while he was sent off gallivanting with his prick of a brother.

So while he smelled of his wife, and the barest hint of her slick from quickly licking her clean after their lovemaking session earlier, his brother smelling of an unknown female was _not_ what he expected. Inuyasha had never scented a female on his brother before, and certainly not one smelling of arousal. “So… who is she?”

“This Sesshomaru knows not.”

“Oh, come on. I know you can smell it even better than I can.”

“The scent does not escape me. I do not, in fact, know her name.” Inuyasha paused in surprise. Had his brother finally gone to one of the teahouses in the neighboring town? And asked for a room?! “Before you jump to ridiculous conclusions, she is a noble lady. This one did not… exactly… ask for her name.” Inuyasha could not let that slide by unnoted.

“Too busy?” he asked, tone sly.

Sesshoumaru barely suppressed a snarl. He never let himself be in the position to be on the receiving end of his brother’s teasing. Touga would have been far worse, he knew, but at least he was his father, not his annoying younger sibling. “This Sesshomaru would not be so crass as to speak of it with another.”

“Oh ho ho!” Inuyasha crowed. “You better not have gotten up to too much trouble, or you’ll end up with a wife!”

“Your mistake will not be repeated.”

Inuyasha paused for a moment, then a sly smirk lift his lips. "I don't know. Didn't turn out so bad." Sesshoumaru's lip curled just enough to hint at a snarl. "My nose led me right to Kagome. Maybe your nose was doing the same."

The elder of the two appeared to contemplate this for a moment before their attention was diverted by the sound of shouting. A human man trying to protect his wife and son from a small pack of low level youkai. They were dispatched easily enough, the humans were escorted to their village and the brothers were able to make their way back toward the keep. They spread out from the road and each other to cover the area with their scents. They had to make it clear that the inuyoukai territory was not to be trifled with.

As he darted through the forest, Sesshoumaru considered his brother's words. Had he been drawn to that young woman by scent alone? There had been a drive he'd never felt before, one he had little control over, it seemed. _I am in control_ , he asserted to himself. A sigh as he landed on a fallen log brought the scent he was trying to ignore to his nose. Her delicate hands were fisted in his haori when he was kissing her, leaving their imprint on the cloth. His tongue traced his lips. He could even taste her there, though that might be his imagination.

His mind wandered back to the moment he first smelled something when he stepped into the courtyard where visiting nobles often came to enjoy the gardens. His father's mate was a very gracious hostess who made a point to entertain a few noble families in the spring and autumn months. She said it was to maintain favor and encourage the wealthy to help their less fortunate neighbors. It didn’t hurt to show off the success of her butterfly garden though, either.

She was tucked into a corner of the garden, her delicate fingers held out to accept the light touches of butterflies landing and fluttering off again. He had never noticed anyone so ethereal in his life. The gentle smile on her lips drew him in until he was standing beside her without entirely knowing how he’d gotten there. Her deep brown eyes turned to him, a question in her gaze. “My lord,” she greeted him, the beginnings of her movement to bow to him catching his attention. But he didn’t want her to bow to him. So he didn’t let her. His large, dangerously-clawed, hands cupped her shoulders and kept her upright. “My lord?”

“This one does not require your deference.”

“Oh? Then you require something else?” her confused tone barely hid the playful lilt to her voice. Sesshoumaru didn’t understand why it grabbed his ears, pulled him closer so that he was within range to whisper to her. All while he had yet to let go of her slight shoulders.

“I do not know.” The fingers he had been so spellbound by before gently traced the collar of his haori, brushing the embroidery as though reading something about him, line by line. She did not push him away from her, a tiny part of his brain finding that odd. “This one has…”

“A very compelling aura,” she interrupted him. His golden eyes widened in surprise, a completely foreign feeling. Nothing shocked him, nothing surprised him enough to show facial expressions he did not wish to. “You came over to me for a reason, my lord…”

For the life of him, his mind could not come up with the words… but it seemed to find the action. His grip tightened just enough to pull her into his chest, her tiny hands gripping his collar for balance. His lips found hers soft and waiting, no resistance to his kiss as he pressed to taste her. He caught herbal tea and something vaguely sweet on her breath as she sighed against him. One hand slid to the back of her kimono, gripping the layered fabric of her obi to keep hold of her, somehow worried she’d float away like the butterflies that flitted past. His other hand slipped across her shoulder to her neck to cradle her head at her nape. She whimpered, not in fear or pain as he worried she might, but in wanting. He growled in response, lips pressing harder to imprint himself on her, to drink her into himself.

The clatter of a fan hitting the ground at their feet startled them apart enough to breathe. Sesshoumaru looked down, part of him seething at this interruption. His addled brain slowly came to the realization that he was still clinging to this delicate woman and had been kissing her in the very public garden. His ears tuned back into their surroundings and found that no one was whispering about them… yet. His left hand slid from her dark hair and the right released her obi as he stepped back from her. “My lord?” Even the whisper of her voice set his nerves alight and he had to take a step further back.

He bent to retrieve the fan, needing something to do with his hands other than hauling her into them and whisking her away somewhere to… Sesshoumaru almost snapped the fan as his fist tightened, the wood creaking in his palm. Gentling his grip, he placed it in her hand. “This belongs to you.”

“Yes. Thank you.” He nodded. About to say something, he was cut off by his father’s booming voice calling his name from across the garden. The younger inuyoukai felt his face move into one of panic for the briefest of moments, turning on his heel to see that they were still very much alone in this part of the garden and his father was too distant to have seen or smelled anything. “My lord…”

“I must go.” So he did. For a lesser man, one might have called it fleeing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I hope that his shines a little bit different light on Kikyou and make her less of a villain, because she's not really. We'll get more on her in the next chapter too. And Sesshoumaru is no longer just a set piece!


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Idleness can lead to anxious thoughts or to impulsive actions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No warnings this time and you can skip this note if you feel like it.
> 
> I just wanted to thank you all for how much you have continued to support this story and me.  
> For those who don't know, I am a "front line" worker. Whatever that means. I work in healthcare, in direct patient care, on a daily basis. Unfortunately, that means that I am regularly at risk for contact with COVID. Which is what happened this week, not for the first time. So I am having to keep my distance with my family, mask at home... On top of many other stressors this week, it's felt like a lot.   
> So being able to come here to this space and put thoughts into words and give them to you all is a little cathartic. I hope that everyone is staying safe and following precautions. You really just never know.  
> Thank you for your kind words and your kudos. They really do mean a lot to me, especially right now when the world feels like it's falling apart.❤

Kikyou was bored out of her mind in the back recesses of the keep. There was nothing to do, no one to see, and there was nothing she could do about it. There were no safe places for her to venture to alone without risking the main family spotting her, or potentially scenting her. Her little room was secluded and allowed her to be safe, warm, and dry, but it was lonely. Ryusei could only visit once or twice in a day, usually to bring her morning and evening meals and more firewood. He had brought her a few books from his own collection, but she had finished one of them twice and the others once each.

It was in one such moment of boredom that she had decided to see if she could still balance herself on one foot on a stool as she had been able to as a child. Her balance and control had always been impeccable, and it had made her tea ceremony lessons go by in a breeze. So too had she excelled at her poise and etiquette lessons.  _ This _ , she thought with a grin,  _ was definitely an offense I would have been caned for. _ She had kept to the flat of her foot for some time and had been able to maintain for long periods. Now she was working up the nerve to attempt tiptoe and see how that went.

“Kikyou-san, I…” Many things happened in very quick succession. 

The door flew open with barely a knock to herald the person’s entrance. Ryusei’s voice boomed in the small space, startling her. Kikyou squealed in an extremely undignified way. But worst of all, the stool on which she had already been rather precariously teetering became that much more unstable and the young lady began to wobble rather dangerously. “Oh!” she cried, when she nearly went over. Only to find a wide hand at her waist and a broad shoulder under her own fingertips. She gripped a bit more tightly than she meant to, then snatched her hand back and would have toppled over backward were it not for his firm grip. “I… Oh.” Her heart was still racing, possibly faster than it had been in reaction to her almost fall.

“Careful, milady! You could break something.” A squeaky cry snapped his eyes downward and Kikyou’s quickly followed, confusion drawing her delicate brows together. “Hush now, little lady, no need to fret.” He bounced his arms and the small bundle squeaked another protest, but only once before making a slightly more pleased burbling sound. “There, see? You are fine with your ani-chan, aren’t you?”

“Your imouto?” Kikyou breathed in wonder, slowly stepping up to his side so she could see the infant in his arms. He nodded, a quirk of his lips making her smile. “She is very small.”

“Yes. Dragons are often very small at birth since we come from eggs.”

Kikyou blinked a long moment in silence as she stared, clearly trying to determine if she had heard him correctly. “E-Eggs?”

Ryusei laughed. “Yes. Even hanyou. It is a strange thing to humans, but our youki, no matter how weak, creates a protective shell. We are born from our mothers within it, then hatch almost a month later.”

“So when you said she was a few months old…”

“Hai. We mean from birth, but she has only been out of her shell for about two months.”

Kikyou opened her mouth to reply a few times before taking a deep breath. “There is so much about youkai that I never knew.” She looked down at her bare toes, tucking them under the hem of her skirt. “I… I can see now why Lord Inuyasha said that I was not fit to be the mate of a youkai. I thought it would be just like a human marriage. Or… that I could make it be so.”

He was silent a long moment, then gently touched her hand and nodded his head to the small bench he had procured for her to sit by the window. It had a cushion she had mended herself to patch a hole, but it was comfortable enough. “Here, My Lady,” he murmured, moving closer and surprising her with a warm bundle in her arms. “Hush, hush, little one,” he muttered when his sister fussed some at the movement and being left in the arms of someone she didn’t know. “There, see?” This time it was directed at her. 

Kikyou looked down in wonder at the tiny round face peeking out from inside a blanket. She had the darker tone of her brother, which she learned came from their mother, and his dark hair. Dark hair that fluffed in curls on the top of her head and by her ears. The light through the window highlighted it and she was a little surprised to see that instead of the blue tint Ryusei’s hair sported, hers was almost indigo. Her ears were similarly pointed, but the scales on her neck were much fainter in color. She mentioned the difference.

"Hm? Oh, yes, mine became more pronounced as I got older, but they also darken in the sun, just like your skin might," he laughed, finger flicking down the tip of her relatively pale nose. "If you ever got sun, that is." Kikyou couldn’t help but giggle despite the slightly unexpected touch. She had learned over the last few weeks that her new friend was openly affectionate in a way that startled her. She had said something once, and he explained that dragon youkai sought out physical touch by nature, but also that his mother was a very affectionate person. It was ingrained. It had taken a lot of getting used to, but it bothered her less and less as the days passed. “You could, you know. It is warm out today.”

Kikyou looked up from his sister to see the eagerness in his green eyes. He wanted her to venture out more than just at her open window, the edge of the garden just outside the wing she was currently occupying. It was tempting, she could admit to herself, but also terrifying. What if her scent wafted on the breeze and one of the inuyoukai caught wind of her being here? She knew that, eventually, she would have to come clean and ask for real sanctuary in the keep. Her father would know that she had no more succeeded this time than before if she did not return and there was no news of Kagome leaving her husband.

She stood from the bench, softly rocking the little dragon hanyou in her arms, staring down at her soft little face. The babe had not opened her eyes yet that Kikyou had seen, but she imagined they must be as radiant as her older brother’s. Why did holding this tiny body against her stir up such emotions of fear and yet fierce protectiveness? She wanted to be free, to run, to flee! But what about her sister? What about the man who had given her safety when she had no one else? Would she so readily abandon them just to try for the freedom she so sought on her own? She saw no other way for her future to go. Returning to her father’s house was no longer an option, he had made that quite clear. Becoming part of the Inu no Taisho’s household was not truly an option either. Seeing Inuyasha happily married and mated to another woman would be too painful.

Admitting that nearly broke her. Kikyou didn’t even realize through her numbness at the epiphany that she was crying until the infant in her arms began to fuss. “Kikyou-san?”

How did one get a voice like that, she wondered. It always made her think about laying back in the stream near her childhood home to listen to the world muffled through the water, the rushing sound letting her imagine she was being swept away to wherever her imagination took her at the time. “Ryusei-kun,” she gasped, a sob following right after. He made a soft sound, somewhere between a growl and a hiss, long limbs coming around her and the babe in her arms. “I’m sorry, I don’t know…”

“Hush, milady. Hush,” he breathed as he rocked gently back and forth, his sister calming even as Kikyou continued to sob out her emotional wounds.

“What am I to do, Ryusei?” she whimpered. He stiffened a moment in surprise, but his palms remained against her back, warm and gentle.

He took a shuddering breath of his own. “You need not decide now…”

“But what if they catch me here? I will be cast out and then…”

Ryusei took a step back, scooping his sister out of her arms and against his chest with such practiced ease that it made Kikyou blink. His hand went from her back to her cheek, startling her eyes wide. “You are much stronger than you give yourself credit for, milady.” His thumb brushed aside the tears on her cheekbone. “Did you know my mother thought she would be alone after I was born?” he asked in what felt like a completely different tone. Kikyou looked up and found his gaze out the window. “Even knowing what it might mean for her future, that she could end up raising a child entirely on her own and being hated for the rest of her life, she still chose that path because her love for my father… for me…”

“It was enough.”

“Yes but…” Again those intensely green eyes of his pinned her to the spot. “It was important. She wanted to show the people who told her she should not, could not, that she would and could. She would do anything to protect her family.”

It took her a long moment to understand him. He was talking about a woman in love, a woman with a child on the way. That was not a situation she understood. She had been in love… a little, but not to the depth that he was describing. And children… Kikyou had hardly allowed herself the fantasy because there were other goals to attain first. Too many steps before children were even to be considered. “You would do anything to protect your family. You already do. Pretending to be a lowly lamplighter when you are a prince…”

Ryusei shook his head softly, a wry smile on his lips. “I know that may seem a great sacrifice to you, milady, but being with my mother and sister, keeping them safe until my father is well enough…” He trailed off, looking to the window again. “We will leave soon. The mountains west. There is land there along the edge of Inuyoukai territory that the Inu no Taisho has offered to my father to start anew.”

“Leaving?” Kikyou took a step toward him, unsure why or what she planned to do. But he seemed to read her better than she did herself, reaching out to capture her reaching hands with his free one, steadying her. “Y-You will go too?” He nodded, watching her carefully, while gently bouncing his sister in his other arm. “Oh… I… That will be good, for your family.”

“Yes. My father is looking forward to the open space and to be allied with this family when we are mostly alone.”

Kikyou slowly pulled her hands from his, a pang in her chest that she had only really felt one time before. How had she put herself in this same situation a second time? She had vowed to herself that she wouldn’t allow her heart to be broken by another man. And yet… “I wish that you a safe journey.” Ryusei stepped toward her, concern on his face but she shied away from his reach, from his feelings. She did not need his pity. “I have some training in herbalism, or what I’ve been able to teach myself. I will go when you do and find a village…”

“Come with us.”

Kikyou froze, her eyes fluttering with the shock of his words. “Wh-What?”

Ryusei stepped into her space with the grace of the water his voice so reminded her of. He took her chin in his free hand and brushed his thumb along the faint cleft there. “Come with us. You would be free there. No pressures from your family… your father.”

“But my sister…”

“Bring her. We will be a small encampment for some time, but we would welcome the company and the strength of good people. My mother would certainly appreciate the companionship and, if you’re willing, the help to care for both my father and this little one.” His thumb moved across her jawline to her neck, his hand cupping her shoulder. “Kikyou, this does not have to be your life. You can have more. You can have what you want.”

“Freedom?” He nodded resolutely. “And what is the price for that freedom?”

His smile turned a bit sad. It pained him that she felt he would demand some form of payment for the opportunity he was offering her. That she had been raised to believe that the only way she could even hope to be in control of her own future, was to give herself to someone who cared nothing for her. “Nothing but hard work and compassion for others.”

Kikyou felt his palm warm against her shoulder, the way he seemed to glow faintly. She had noted it on several occasions before when he was feeling more emotional. What he was feeling was still a bit of a mystery to her, but she could guess. His actions, soft but bold, had been very telling. Her own very visceral response to him telling her they were leaving soon told her she couldn’t ignore it. “I will go, if that is truly what you wish.”

The smile that lit his face was beautiful and Kikyou couldn’t help reflecting it, albeit a bit more nervously. She squeaked in surprise when he pulled her into him, a peck of his lips landing on her forehead. “Milady! I am very glad to hear that.”

And Kikyou was glad too. It was the most decisive thing she could remember doing in her life and it gave her butterflies in her belly. The handsome man still beaming at her had nothing to do with that feeling. Nothing...

* * *

Sunlight filtered through the drapes, casting a muted glow on his sleeping wife. Inuyasha smiled to himself. She was finally sleeping soundly after being awake and restless for a good portion of the night. There were so many things he had never even thought about when it came to pregnancy before going through this with Kagome. There were not many mated couples in the keep and he had minimal social interaction with others outside of his family and Miroku. The monk was married now, but not terribly helpful in the “what to expect” advice because they were going through it at the same time. If anything, he would be the one giving his advisor advice!

His mother had been imparting tidbits of knowledge, but it had been more than thirty years since her pregnancy and there had been a fair amount of unrest during that time. She didn’t remember everything. Inuyasha clenched his jaw as he thought of what his parents, his mother in particular, had been through. He knew only what his parents had told him and the little that had filtered through rumours, but he had a feeling there was much more to their history than they had shared with him. 

His father had been gravely injured in a battle with a group of youkai who had kidnapped a bunch of humans. Outnumbered, he had to fall back to recover from his injuries or succumb to them. The Inu no Taisho told his family that he might have died had his now-wife not stumbled upon him in the forest. 

The daughter of a nobleman, Izayoi had been under strict rules and intense pressure from the time she began her education. She was to be quiet, well-mannered, marry well and bear sons. Had she not met Touga, that very well may have been her fate. The neighboring lord’s son, Takemaru, had taken a shine to her from the time she was introduced to society. Nevermind that he was almost fifteen years her senior and she despised him. To Takemaru, Izayoi was a prize, one he felt he deserved because of his status and his prowess in battle. His efforts to court her were stilted and arrogant, entirely based on the assumption that she must be in love with him because he was so very in love with himself.

When Izayoi escaped to the woods repeatedly, no one thought much of it at first. She always had good excuses for the trips. Eventually, her parents pushed for her to stop being stubborn and accept Takemaru, and it all came out that she was betrothed to a lord they knew nothing about. A youkai lord. They tried to forbid it, to lock her away until she complied. Little did they know the internal strength of the daughter they had tried to shape into a prim lady. Touga barely restrained himself from destroying her parents' home to get to her, stopped only by her sweet voice reminding him that he could be the elegant gentleman they wanted for her. The inuyoukai lord gained an audience with her father, persuaded him that his daughter would be married to him or to no one, and offered double the bride price to make sure he couldn’t refuse. Her father, a prideful man, might have turned him down were it not for the fact that he was also a very greedy man.

They were married almost immediately and began their lives together within her parents’ manor house. The keep in which they all now lived was still being built at the time, so Touga could not take his bride home, nor could he leave her behind until it was finished. Her parents did not love him being under their roof, but they couldn’t dispute it either as they were legally wed and mated under youkai law. Five months later, they were preparing to leave for the keep when all hell broke loose.

Touga was away in the village nearby to gather supplies for their relatively long journey. He wanted to ensure that his very pregnant mate would be comfortable and have anything she might need while they traveled. The scent of smoke caught his nose, but the sudden feeling of fear that dropped into the pit of his stomach had him soaring over the short distance from the village to the house. The eastern wing was engulfed in flames. He didn’t hesitate, bursting through the wall and immediately seeking out his mate. Izayoi was held at the mercy of the despicable human male who still thought that she belonged to him. He was obviously deranged, spouting nonsense about cleansing her of the impurity she carried. Touga was in motion before he even realized it, separating the man’s arm from his body to free Izayoi and scooping her up within the folds of the firerat robe he’d had made for her protection. It continued to protect her from the flames as he narrowly avoided a falling roof beam and erupted out of the front of the house. The dying screams of the human man inside did not faze him as he took her as far from the smoke as he could manage without risking their unborn child in his mad dash.

It was obvious to all that the human lord’s son had started the fire, a stable boy confirming he’d seen him entering the back of the house just before it began. Thanks to the time of day and the limited location of the initial fire, no one but Takemaru died in the flames that day, but Izayoi’s family lost much. Touga gave them what he had with him and told them in no uncertain terms that his wife would not be returning there. Unfinished or not,  _ his _ keep in  _ his _ territory was the safest place for her and their pup. They arrived just barely in time for Izayoi to give birth in the place they still called home three decades later.

Inuyasha knew that Kagome was plenty safe within these walls, yet he couldn’t help feeling anxious about her all the time. She cat napped throughout the day and night, too uncomfortable to sleep for longer periods of time. She had gained only just enough weight for the healer to not be concerned. Inuyasha felt a constant vibration of worry no matter what anyone told him.

“Hmm…” Kagome mumbled in her sleep, one hand reaching out, grasping at him until she pulled him down beside her. She pressed the small swell of her belly against him and hummed another noise she made once in a while. It was her best attempt at a content purr, the sound she was enticing her mate to make. Inuyasha sighed softly, beginning to rumble gently so that the pup could feel it. It settled Kagome enough that she returned to deeper sleep. For a little while at least, the worry faded enough that Inuyasha was able to enjoy the beauty of this moment with his wife.

* * *

“My lord, I must speak with you.” Touga paused midstep, rotating on his heel to meet the earnest gaze of the young dragon hanyou calling for his attention. He looked him over thoughtfully before nodding his acquiescence. “I must confess that I have been less than forthcoming for the last several weeks and I must apologize.” He dropped into a low bow, his slightly scaled hands clenching somewhat nervously against his knees.

Touga raised a brow, the faintest smirk lifting the corner of his lips. “Is this about the woman you have squirreled away in the unoccupied part of the keep?” he asked, his tone casual. The poor boy’s head popped up so fast he almost hurt himself. His slack jawed look only confirmed that it was exactly that. Touga tapped his nose. “You did well hiding her, but I don’t miss anything in my own territory.”

“B-But…” He looked down as he tried to process the disbelief. “Does Lord Inuyasha know too?” he asked softly, remorse and anxiety in his scent. Touga shook his head. Not yet, he didn’t. His younger son was too caught up in his mate and her pregnancy. Not that he could blame him. He also couldn’t share that detail. “She was in dire straits, my lord. Her father…”

“Has made himself known. He sent word for her several days ago and threatened action if my son was keeping her as a concubine. Were you a different man, I might have been concerned.” The inuyoukai couldn’t help noticing how the young dragon hanyou flushed and seemed to suddenly radiate warmth at the implication of anything untoward occurring between the young lady and himself. “I commend you on protecting the lady, Ryusei, but she cannot stay here forever.”

“I-I asked her to come to the mountain territory with us.” It was the inuyoukai lord’s turn to be surprised. Ryuuzou was private, with good reason, keeping his family a secret to protect them for decades. His eldest brother, Ryukotsusei - and the current king of the dragons - had meant to take his youngest brother’s life when he discovered that he had fathered not just one, but two, hanyou. It was only by Ryuuzou’s sheer force of will and luck that brought Touga in range in time to save his friend. The king of dragons was bound to his lands and Touga would have to deal with the fallout of that encounter later. Now though… Now he was faced with the good and kind young man that his friend had sired and raised to be honorable.

So honorable that he likely hadn’t thought to ask his father if it was alright for him to bring an unknown human woman with them to their new sanctuary.

“Your father is comfortable with this?” The panic that lit Ryusei’s green eyes was almost comical. “I think it best that you discuss it with your parents before making any promises, my boy.” He nodded emphatically. “I have already sent a pair of guards to… invite the younger sister to look in on Lady Kikyou. I don’t trust the mother any more than the father.”

There was clear relief on his face at this news. “Thank you, My Lord, thank you,” he breathed. “Kikyou-san feared for her safety.” 

As had he, which was why he sent for the girl to begin with. This human had begun showing his true colors on big waving flags at this point. Touga had always suspected he might cause trouble. His displeasure at a youkai ruling the territory had been clear from the moment he took over his father’s holdings twenty some years before. But to actively attempt to sabotage Inuyasha’s marriage? Using his daughter as a pawn in a game to gain power? He had dealt with similar humans before, but it never ceased to sicken him that these men could think their women held so little worth.

Touga watched Ryusei scuttle off to speak with his father. Or with the young lady. He couldn’t be sure. The inuyoukai would need to go and check on his friend later anyway. Last he knew, he was trying to grow back a lower limb on top of his only slightly less serious injuries and he knew it would take him months more. Despite Touga’s offers for them to remain in the keep until he was fully healed, Ryuuzou insisted on them venturing out to the mountain territory that would be their new home. He insisted that he was putting the Inu no Taisho’s family at risk, being there, and wanted to leave as soon as he was even  _ mostly _ able.

Having been a stubborn younger youkai with grave injuries and an important goal himself once, he could relate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me on Tumblr @Dangerouspompadour for teasers, snippets, updates, random thoughts, WIPs, etc.   
> Also keep an eye out for #Inuyasha Sins Week starting tomorrow (9/20/20)!


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